Friendship: The Final Frontier
by ShootingSparkles
Summary: Lacey has gone through Starfleet without sleeping with Jim Kirk-going where no female has, friendship with him akin to exploring unknown terrain. But being his friend for years causes feelings to arise that are beyond her control. She knows more than just playboy Jim she knows HIM. But will he share the same feeling or will she just end up as another notch on his bedpost? Jim/OC
1. Chapter 1

**1.**

Lacey Archer had first met James Kirk at a bar most Star Fleet Academy Cadets frequent on Friday and Saturday nights. The bar was usually filled with cadets or regular civilians giving the cadets a good dose of the 'outside' world.

Jim had a reputation at Star Fleet and was credited to sleeping with nearly half the female population and was determinedly working on the whole, even though it was his first year at the Institution. Lacey had been told this by a good friend and sort of roommate, Nyota Uhura.

"There he is, that's him," Nyota pointed out.

Lacey scanned the bar to the direction where Nyota was pointing. She saw a tall, leanly muscular man with bright blue eyes. Lacey had to admit, she understood why most of the females, and some of the males, at Star Fleet would want to sleep with the man. But he looked like the kind of man who would just sleep with someone. He wasn't a relationship kind of guy. But then again that was judging from a cover and what Nyota had told her, she didn't know him personally.

"He is attractive, you have to admit," Lacey said with a shrug. She took a sip of a regular old beer in a beer can that hadn't been used since the early 22nd century.

"Attractive yes, but he knows it," Nyota said with an eye roll, "Besides, he's nowhere near my type."

"You're right," Lacey nodded, "You're more of the dark, silent, mysterious type. And I'm fairly certain you'd prefer a Vulcan to a human." She gave Nyota a knowing smirk to which her friend blushed and smacked her on the arm.

"How did you find out?" Nyota said.

"Oh Lacey, you have to go sit into one of Spock's Xenolinguistic lectures, oh Lacey Professor Spock said the funniest thing today-though I'm pretty certain that he did not mean it to be funny, and let's not forget Nyota's Spock fact of the Day," Lacey said imitating Nyota's voice that she had gotten when she talked about the Vulcan commander/professor.

"You'd understand if you found someone to be completely infatuated with and you could not be with him," Nyota said pulling a tragic face.

"Let's hope that never happens," Lacey said staring at the 'legendary' Jim Kirk, "So did he really hit on you at that bar in Iowa?"

"Yes and he was so arrogant about it," Nyota said with an eye roll, "He was wasted and still expected me to sleep with him."

"And you kept him wanting more by not telling him your first name," Lacey said, "Please, you liked the teasing."

"Liked it? I loathed it."

"Well prepare for more, here he comes," Lacey said in a sing song voice. Lacey was a little tipsy and she was a happy drunk. But it took a lot for her to get drunk. She could hold her liquor better than most people.

"Oh god," Nyota said taking a sip of Lacey's drink.

"Well, well, well," the southern drawl of Jim Kirk said as he leaned against the bar table looking at Nyota and Lacey, "If it isn't, what was your name again?"

"Nice try, still not interested," Nyota said.

Lacey noticed the man standing behind him wearing a most ferociously annoyed scowl. It was Dr. Leonard McCoy. She practiced as a surgeons assistant with him leading the fake surgery. He was fascinating, a damn good doctor but had the worst bedside manners ever.

"Hello, Dr. McCoy," Lacey chirped. Nyota giggled at the fact that Lacey had completely ignored Kirk and the blue eyed man had noticed.

"Hello Cadet Archer, how do your studies go?" Dr. McCoy asked.

"Fairly good, I'm in an intense seminar about how to lead a surgery," Lacey said with a smile.

Nyota smiled. Lacey was always in a good mood. Drinking made her more confident around strangers-as it usually does for the average human and occasional Orion and Lacey was no outlier. Sober, the blonde was shy, but not anti social, more bookish that outgoing. But she was always happy. Even when frustrated with school. She had even sat through one of Professor Spock's Xenolingustics class per Nyota's request, hadn't understood a single word and when Commander Spock asked her about it she had cheerfully said she didn't understand a thing of what he was saying but insisted that the subject was fascinating and would definitely think about taking it if she decided to double major. Then Lacey practically skipped out of the lecture room leaving the Commander to wonder if the human was doing the act of making fun of him until Nyota assured him that was just how Lacey was.

"Well, hello," Jim said sliding close to Lacey, "Jim Kirk, friend of the good Doctor."

"Yeah, I know who you are, I'm Lacey Archer," Lacey said shaking his hand.

"Bones, why did you never introduce me to this delightful young woman," Jim said looking at McCoy.

Lacey raised an eyebrow of amusement at Nyota and mouthed: delightful young woman.

Bones sighed, "We aren't exactly close, Jim, she played surgeon's assistant to one of my practice surgeries."

"I would not have dismissed you as so insignificant," Jim said.

"I bet you tell that to all the girls you get to sleep with you," Lacey said, "Is it true that you slept with nearly half the women at Star Fleet?"

Nyota choked on her drink and Bones smirked.

"I see my reputation precedes me," Jim said avoiding the question, "However, would you like to see if I live up to the gossip?"

"Fascinating," Lacey said. Nyota rolled her eyes. Since attending Spock's lecture, Lacey had taken upon saying fascinating. She claimed it made her seem smarter than she actually was. "You just hit on my friend, in front of me, then proceeded to proposition me. Does that normally work on women?"

"Yes, yes it usually does," Jim said with a 'heart-melting, knee trembling' smile that did make Lacey feel both but she was a woman of science-sort of and she had standards.

"Interesting, I don't know how that makes me feel about my gender," Lacey said staring off into the bar before snapping her hazel eyes onto Jim, "If that didn't work how would you go on?" Lacey drank the rest of her beer and set it on the table. She shifted so Nyota was getting her back and her chin was resting on her hand.

"Well, in your case, I'd buy you a drink seeing as you finished yours then proceed to ask you about yourself," Jim said waving his hand around, "Then being my charming self, I'd offer to walk you home then go in."

Lacey laughed as Jim bought her another beer and wiggling an eyebrow suggestively. Leonard groaned and Nyota rolled her eyes at the two.

"What about you?" Jim said taking a swig of his drink, "How would you go about getting it on with an uninterested guy?"

"Hmm," Lacey said tapping her chin, "I'd probably change the topic. Though my approach would be more subtle than yours. I'd sidle up next to him, flutter my eyelashes, he'd either buy me a drink or ignore me. If he ignored me, I'd challenge him to pool-loser buys the drinks. Usually me challenging them emasculates them slightly and they go for the challenge, I'm 'fragile' as one guy put it, they don't want to hurt my feelings. The ones that are in relationships or have their sights say no and I back off. But I don't normally do this."

"Doesn't do this at all," Nyota muttered to Leonard who smirked.

Jim laughed as they toasted the tips of the beer bottles together.

Nyota checked the clock above the bar, "Lacey, it's after eleven, the guys are going to start getting grabby."

"What?" Leonard asked looking amused and affronted.

"It's our system," Nyota said, "We've frequented enough bars to know that the guys start trying harder when you say no after eleven. Gaila usually stays at whatever bar we're going to, Annie too. That's why they're not here right now, so Lacey takes my room since Annie usually takes her partners to their dorm."

"Since I'm not interested," Lacey said surveying the bar, "Go for that brunette over by the restroom. She practically oozing, I want a hook up."

Jim looked at the same direction to where Lacey was staring at. He nodded, "Yeah I think she'll definitely be interested."

Lacey flashed him a smile and gave Leonard a wave as her and Nyota walked out of the bar. Jim shook himself out before sauntering the girl standing near the restroom. He gave her his signature half smile and her response to it immediately let him know it was in the bag.

Back in Nyota's dorm, Lacey was changing Gaila's sheets. She loved the green Orion to death but she knew the woman's promiscuity and her numerous sexual partners. She wondered if she and Jim had ever done the dead.

"I don't know why you don't like Jim, he seems to just be harmlessly teasing," Lacey said pulling the pillow case of Gaila's down pillow.

"When he doesn't want to get in your pants," Nyota said, "You brushed him off really well."

"Well, for YOU," Nyota said in an afterthought, she sent Lacey a teasing smile, "I did better."

Lacey threw the case-less pillow at Nyota and stuck her tongue at her.

"He seemed nice though," Lacey said, "I don't know if I'd sleep with him after only knowing him for five minutes. But then again I really wouldn't do that with any guy."

Nyota shrugged, "We'll leave that for Gaila and Annie."

The next day, Lacey was curled up in a plush sofa in one of the cadet student centers or whatever they were called studying on her PADD. She had a notebook in front of her, when she found a store that still sold those things she was thrilled. She loved writing things down by hand, it reminded her of simpler times in history.

"Writing notes by hand? How interesting," a male voice said over her shoulder.

Lacey jumped causing her notebook to fall off the couch. The body belonging to the voice walked over to pick up the notebook.

Lacey smiled, "Hey Jim. What's up?"

"Good call on restroom chick, she was fun," Jim commended sitting on the couch Lacey was occupying.

"Well, I have excellent taste," Lacey said with a trace of a posh British accent and a wink.

"You know you're a better wingman than Bones, we should frequent bars together when you're not going with Uhura," Jim said.

"Don't let Leonard tell you that," Lacey whisper scolded with a playful smile, "Did you see his face last night? He looked like he was having the time of his life."

Jim let out a snort of laughter.

"But that does sound like fun," Lacey said with a smile, "I am an excellent wingman. But-Uhura never lets me set her up with anyone."

It felt weird calling Nyota by her last name but it was funny teasing Jim about this. It was even funnier to see Jim's pouty face when he realized that she wasn't going to give Uhura's name either.

"What class do you have?" Jim asked.

"Intro to Treatment of Foreign Illnesses," Lacey said with a grimace.

"Ah, medicine, do you want to be a doctor?" Jim asked.

"Some would think," Lacey said, "But I'd rather be a nurse. Being a doctor seems stressful or at least it looks stressful. My dad would always seem stressed when he came home."

"Is he a doctor?" Jim asked.

"He was the chief medical examiner on the USS Radon, he died though," Lacey said looking down.

"I get it," Jim said with a nod. Lacey just looked at him. "You want to make him proud, dead or alive, I get it."

It suddenly hit Lacey. James KIRK. The son of George Kirk. Well shit.

"Yeah," Lacey said with a soft smile, "I get it too. So what class are you going to."

"I'm off to take the Kobayashi Maru test," Jim said puffing out his chest.

"First time?" Lacey asked.

"Yup."

"Good luck, I've heard horror stories of that test from some upperclassmen," Lacey said.

"Well no need, I got this," Jim said with an arrogant smirk.

Lacey rolled her eyes, "But still, I give my luck to you."

At this Lacey proceeded to flourish her arms spectacularly, gracing Jim with her luck as he laughed on the couch.

And after that moment, unknowingly, Lacey Archer was setting off. To boldly go where no straight woman had gone before. To be Jim Kirk's just a friend that's a girl.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note:**

Thanks for favoriting, following and reviewing this story!

Enjoy!

* * *

2.

One Year Later

Lacey Archer sat in her seat in one of the numerous Star Fleet lecture rooms staring directly at the screen of her PADD. She was cramming for her final on the different illnesses of the planet Romulus. One would be surprised of how many illnesses are present on one planet. Most could be cured easily but still. There were so many. All different strands of oddly shaped bacterium, viruses and diseases.

She stared at the picture of a Romulan male with Romulan small pox and was glad that the human form of this had been eradicated in the late 21st century. She grimaced in disgust, sometimes she wondered why she wanted to go into the field of medicine before she was reminded that her father was the chief of medicine for the USS Kelvin before the...incident. He hadn't died during the attack but had died later on the next ship he had joined, the USS Radon. She was doing this in order to make her dead father proud.

Lacey was distracted by the two seats next to her being moved and sat in by two people. She looked to her left and saw the smirking face of James Kirk and knew immediately that it was Leonard McCoy who had sat on her right.

"What is it Jim? Why are you the Medical Academy building. I have a test to study for," Lacey complained knowing he was coming here to bother her and blow off steam before he had to take the Kobayashi Maru test. For his second time. Usually the cadets taking the test stop after the first time failing, but this was Jim. He was nothing if not a stubborn man. He was determined to pass the seemingly un-passable test. For the exact same reason, Lacey was determined to be a nurse. To make their dead parents proud.

"Oh boy," Leoarnd said looking at her PADD, "Romulan small pox. I had a patient with this stuff. Remember that humans can catch it. And it is a lot worse for the humans than the Romulans. A lot worse."

Lacey snorted, "Well Mr. I'm a doctor pants, do you want to take the test for me?"

"Even if he did he couldn't," Jim said with a grin, "I've appointed him my chief medical examiner for my retest."

Lacey sighed, "When I say good luck please to not say I've got this. The test is un-passable, you do not have this."

"You can't say that, you have to take it too," Jim said, giving her a Look.

Lacey gave him such a dirty look that he literally cringed and Leonard burst into laughter. Lacey huffed and leaned against her chair. She had been pressured, literally pressured to try and double major and go in the way of a commander, not just a nurse.

It was three fourths a way through her second year of nurse training when a retired Admiral what's his butt, she was so angry at him she was determined to not remember his name, saw him her ordering around a third class science officer, a fellow nurse in training and an engineer on the USS Tobias. Lacey didn't even remember why she was ordering them around. She just remembered being really frustrated, something broke and no one wanted to fix it. On that's what it was. It was a simulation, much like the Kobayashi Maru, but slightly easier. It was probably the easiest test a commander in training had to take.

She was elected to be the chief medical examiner seeing as though all the actual cadets training for this job were on a field trip to somewhere and only the nurses in training were left.

The person who was doing the simulation was obviously unprepared and had abandoned ship once the thing started. Then the engineer dropped a PADD, it broke and all hell broke loose. The science officer and the engineer pretty much got into a fist fight and Lacey was more annoyed at the fact she was missing her day off from training to come to that train wreck that she whipped everyone into shape. Apparently, that impressed the old Admiral.

So he came up to her after the test and praised her calm mind. When in actuality she hadn't been thinking like a commander she had been thinking like an annoyed nurse whose time was being wasted. She hadn't planned the orders she gave or the fiercness in her voice to command such power. She had tried to deny the job saying that accepting another major would be too much work on her part and she wouldn't be able to commit one hundred percent. But that old fart had stared at her so intensely that she choked under the pressure and accepted the double major.

"Yes Jim, don't remind me," Lacey said heatedly, "But once I fail the Kobayashi Maru I can use that as an excuse to stop my classes. I do not want to be a commander. God, who was that Admiral. I seriously dislike him right now."

The plan was set in motion. She would take the test and try for her own pride's sake. Fail the test like everyone else and blame it on the fact that she had so much studying to do for her nurse training-which was her chosen major and her number one priority. If that old bag of bones didn't take that she would just drop the class, with or without pressure.

"Yeah, it's better that you're a nurse," Jim said with a nod, "There are more slutty jokes I can make about you as a nurse than a commander. And we can traverse together in the galaxy, me, you and Bones over here bringing us crashing back down to Earth."

Lacey snickered and shoved his arm, "You guys need to go. I have to pass this exam."

Jim plopped his head on her shoulder and moved closer to her. Lacey's breath hitched, she wasn't going to lie but she ignored it. They were friends, almost as close as he and Bones were. No ruining that. But she could still indulge in her infatuation.

"You don't need to pass this test, you've passed all the other ones with flying colors," Jim said in her ear, "You're at the top of your class, what's one test?"

Lacey pushed him off her shoulder, "You are such a bad influence. You're supposed to motivate your crewman."

She gave him a huge sarcastic smile. To which he returned with a smirk.

Leonard heaved a sigh, "Can I please take your test for you? I do not want to sit through another one of Jim's tests."

"It can't be that bad," Lacey said looking from Leonard to Jim.

"He killed everyone in our last test by deciding to use guerilla warfare and cross the Neutral Zone, guns and lazers ablazing," Leonard said, "then we were fired upon by at least six Klingon warships. It was over in three minutes."

Jim reached behind Lacey and punched Leonard, "Bones, stop exaggerating."

"I don't know Jim," Lacey said raising an eyebrow, "I sounds pretty plausible to me, knowing you like a do and all. You're not know for your patience and ability to look at the situation in its enitity."

"Guys, I'm about to retake the hardest test I'm ever going to have to take to be a commander, show some support," Jim said indignantly, puffing out his chest with half-mocking arrogance.

"Well you already took it, sweetie, and we were supportive," Lacey said patting him on the shoulder, "It'll get harder once you keep taking it. But I'm still going to wish you luck."

"Thank you Lacey, that's more than Bones gave me," Jim said.

"Dammit Jim, I'm a doctor not your personal motivator," Bones said slapping the lecture desk tables idignantly.

Both of them stood up and bid Lacey goodbye.

She watched as her fellow classmates for this class filed in. Their professor, a retired nurse, sent them the test tablets. There was some kind of anti cheat technology on them then sent their tests onto the main computer where they were automatically corrected.

Lacey laughed under her breath as she answered. She was bugging for no reason. Her eyes twinkled looking at a true or false question: True or False? Romulan small pox affects Romulans only.

Lacey walked out of her class, the one after the exam. She had just gotten her test results updated on her PADD, she had passed. It was exciting.

"Jim," Lacey called, "How was your-oh."

She caught Jim's aggravated and irritated face. Leonard wasn't with him, he probably got irritated and left Jim to his sulking. Lacey bit her lip. She knew that Jim was going to fail the test, no one had passed it, it was impossible. Either you cross the Neutral Zone to save the Kobayashi Maru and the Klingons saw that as an act of war then they attack you fully and you die OR you could fly away and avoid war but then you abandon the passengers of the Kobayashi Maru. So whatever you do you fail. Most cadets panic and end up killing both their own ship and passengers and the ones on the Kobayashi Maru.

Honestly, whoever invented that test must have had a screw loose. If there was no passing, what was the point of the test? Reason #23 why she was perfectly fine with being a nurse. It was less confusing, either you killed the patient or you saved them.

"Do I want to ask how it went?" Lacey asked.

"No," Jim muttered looking down at his feet.

"Do you need a hug?" Lacey asked.

"Yes," Jim nodded.

Lacey was already going for the hug even before he agreed. "It's okay Jim," Lacey murmured.

"It's not okay," Jim said, "How am I supposed to be a commander if I can't even pass one stupid test?"

"Hey, where is Jim Kirk?" Lacey said pulling away slightly, still keeping her arms wrapped around his neck, "It's not just one stupid test. It's the hardest test, practically un-passable."

"It shouldn't matter, I should pass nonetheless," Jim said staring at her hard.

Lacey tightened her lips. She got it. Just last week a professor said that he knew his dad and asked if she was training to be a doctor to be a chief of medicine on a starship. He looked so disappointed when she told him she just wanted to a nurse. Then he said that her father was a good man, worked until his dying day and there wouldn't be anyone like him. It might not have seemed so, but Lacey felt like it was a slap to the face. She was his daughter, she could be a 'good man' like her father. But no, she wasn't a doctor.

"I get it," Lacey muttered.

Jim smiled sadly.

"Enough sadness," Lacey said suddenly planting her hands on her hips, "People are going to think that you're losing your touch. The way to get back from a failing test grade is to party till you forget."

"What a great philosophy," Jim said, his teasing voice back, "Who said that?"

"Just a great guy I know named James Kirk," Lacey said with a shrug.

"Well it is Friday, classes won't start till Monday," Jim said with an eyebrow wiggle, "I'll come get you and we'll hit the bar."

"Okay," Lacey said with a smile. She started to leave but she stopped and turned back to Jim, "Don't beat yourself too much about this test, okay?"

He nodded and gave her his usual charming smile before heading to his class. Lacey turned as well with a shake of her head a soft smile.

After classes were over, she headed to her dorm. Face planting into her bead she groaned into her mattress.

"Don't worry doll, it's the weekend," Annie said over her.

Lacey let out a muffled chuckle and turned around. She stared at Annie who had already taken out their Star Fleet regulated cadet uniform. Annie hated the color red which Lacey told her would be a problem since Annie was on course to be a starship engineer and would be wearing red for the rest of her career.

Annie was a knockout, she had this really pretty straight brown hair which Lacey was extremely jealous of. Lacey had tightly curled-corkscrew curled- hair that was so unmanageable at some days that she just didn't do anything with it at all, the beginning of this year she chopped off her previously shoulder blade hair to a length slightly above her shoulders. But the good part was that no one ever noticed. Annie was a Betazoid, the first one Lacey had met. But due to her extreme humanoid features no one really noticed when you looked at her quickly. They just saw a pretty human but once you saw her black irises, you knew of her species.

Some people worried about her telepathy powers but Annie always laughed about this. Her cadet status called for her to get shots to repress her telepathic powers so she couldn't cheat on exams or simulations.

Right now, Annie was wearing a classic little black dress. It really hadn't gone out of style yet, shocking.

"Are you going to the Metal?" Lacey asked.

"Yeah, I need the dorm room," Annie said.

"Per usual," Lacey snorted.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Annie said with a teasingly affronted voice.

They already had their big fight about this situation. Annie used to come in the dorm while Lacey was still in it then sexile her while Annie had her wicked way with some man she had met in the bar. So the compromise was, Annie would get the dorm on Friday and Saturday nights. Sunday nights if Lacey could borrow something from Annie's extensive closet.

"It means I heart you," Lacey said with a twirl, "And you can have the dorm on Sunday if I could have that blue dress."

"Alright," Annie said with a nod. Annie had the whole 'Kirk' reputation down to a par. However, Annie had not slept with Jim. Annie had came up to her once to talk to her about it. It was awkward to say the least.

Last year, towards the end of the second semester:

"So I heard Jim slept with Anaya," Annie said casually.

"Yeah, I know," Lacey said with a smile, "I was there when he 'picked her up'." Lacey laughed when she saw Jim using a technique she had saw on an old TV series.

"Hmm," Annie said, "You know I haven't slept with him yet."

"You want to," Lacey said, shocked. She was always shocked for some reason that some people would just decide they wanted to have sex with a random person, like on the spot or even after a couple of drinks. Lacey was more of a relationship then sex girl.

"No," Annie said, "You're friends with him and I'm your dorm mate. It would be weird."

"I don't think so," Lacey said confused.

"Yeah, it would be," Annie said, "You know what they say about friends between boys and girls."

"What?" Lacey asked.

"I know you guys might get together in the future," Annie said, "So I don't want to feel weird about it."

"What?" Lacey asked again furrowing her brows together.

"I once dated a guy my friend slept with and it was so weird," Annie mused, "That's partially why I'm not friends with her anymore. Plus, she slept with him again while we were dating."

"What?" Lacey asked yet again but Annie had went into her own world, something she normally did and left Lacey embarrassed, confused and sort of relieved.

Lacey pulled on the blue dress feeling it swish around her legs. Her curly hair was tamed with various pins and she decided she didn't want to deal with the extra curled curls that would be unleashed after she took the pins out.

"Well don't you look hot," Annie said with a twinkle in her black irises, "Maybe you'll need the dorm instead of me."

Lacey blushed bright pink, she was never comfortable with sex related jokes. Form Jim, from Annie, from Gaila but she didn't need to worry about Nyota. Nyota didn't like sex jokes either.

There was a knock on the dorm door breaking Lacey's gaze from the closet door's full length mirror to Annie. She opened her mouth to say good bye when the Betazoid interrupted her before she even got a chance to start talking.

"You're going to the bar with someone?" Annie asked sarcastically. She knew as well as anyone that Nyota didn't go to bars on Fridays and Gaila was probably already there.

Lacey rolled her eyes and walked out of the dorm meeting Jim at the door.

"Well, you look good," Jim said, "You remember when we first met and I asked if you were interested? I might need to pull that out again even if the direct approach never worked before."

Lacey rolled her eyes, "I'm glad to hear that you're feeling like yourself again. But the answer is still no." Lacey shot him a teasing look that he returned with his heart melting, knee trembling charming smile that still made her feel both side affects even in their self appointed platonic state.

Jim snorted before entering Lacey and Annie's dorm then jumped onto Lacey's bed, looking back at the blonde with a cocked eye brow and a cocky smile.


	3. Chapter 3

3.

Music is so loud in clubs. The beat literally becomes one with your heart. Lacey felt the bass thrum and her heart beat thump with each pulse. It was kind of terrifying to feel that effect the music had on her. The sound of this bar could not be good for the ears. No wonder why Leonard hated to come to bars all the time, he always had sensitive ears.

Lacey watched as Jim ordered them drinks. He walked, or swaggered, or sauntered over towards her. Lacey raised an eyebrow as she accepted her drink but then took a glance around the room and watched as the eyes of all the women in the bar-with a guy or single-look at Jim while he made his way towards her. Jim didn't just walk, he strutted, like some kind of peacock unfolding his plumage to attract all the 'ladies'.

She took a swig of the drink feeling the alcohol burn down her throat. Alcohol was weird. She wasn't a fan but she drank when the time was right. And Jim was in a bad spot, though he wouldn't show it, so drinking with him was her way to support him without getting overly emotional. Jim hated it when everything got emotional.

"That girl over there saw that strut," Lacey said with a smirk, "She's into you."

Jim looked over her shoulder locking eyes with a girl Lacey was talking about. She was pretty-green eyes brown hair, he filed her away for later.

"I think we should go to a civilian oldies bar and hustle some people in pool," Jim mused chugging down some of his drink.

Lacey bit her lip, musing upon the idea. Lacey was surprisingly really good at pool. Jim said she was even slightly better than him. She just shrugged it off saying it was mathematics or something but she knew there was some skill involved. Her grandfather had taught her over the summer when she lived with him at thirteen. Her grandfather was very passionate about pool. It was quite uncomfortable at times, but it came in handy when hustling the meatheads that frequented the oldies bars.

Oldies bars were bars that brought back the bars famous way back when. There was beer in old fashioned brown glass bottles, darts and of course pool tables. Jim and Lacey had been to a civilian one near the Academy once and they had played pool against each other. Then Jim said they would be able to hustle a lot of money from the unsuspecting civilian. They both knew that money didn't really have a great value in the 23rd century as it did in later dates, but it was still funny to take it from the ignorant passerby.

Lacey guessed that everything was being overturned at this point. Gosh, she hoped that Jim passed the third test. She didn't want to be around if he didn't.

"I guess we could," Lacey said nodding slowly nodding her head liking the sound of that more and more.

Jim smiled putting his drink down and rubbing his hands together in excitement. He grabbed her by the forearm and started to pull her out of the Academy bar. Lacey drank the last of her drink and set it on a table in front of who knows what person.

...

"So who am I playing?" Lacey asked wiggling her eyebrows suggestively. She was a little tipsy to say the least, way before they even reached the bar.

"I'm thinking," Jim said snaking his arm around her waist and bringing her closer, "My clueless, tipsy girlfriend, that's way too overly flirty and ditzy."

"Easy," Lacey said fixing her halter top before draping her arm around his neck.

Lacey kissed his cheek and smiled as they pushed the door of the bar open. Jim burst out in uproarious laughter as Lacey giggled and simpered next to him. Some of the civilians looked at her and Jim and noticed the Star Fleet Academy insignia on Jim's black shirt. One pair shook their head at them. It was common knowledge that the civilians thought the Star Fleet cadets were stuck up or whatever.

"Barkeep," Jim said in a booming voice, "Your finest liquor for the lady please."

The guy behind the bar just stared at him and went into the cooler to grab two bottles of beer. Jim handed one to Lacey.

"Thank you Jimmy bear," Lacey said raising her voice to an annoying nasal a girl in her nursing class used. Lacey was always annoyed when she heard that voice, so maybe she wasn't the only one.

"You're welcome, Lacey," Jim said poking her on the nose. Lacey felt the coolness of the bottle glass come close to her cheek and she shuddered.

Well this was great. The close proximity, the scent of Jim, the intoxicating elements of the alcohol and the coolness of the bottle was mixing in her tipsy brain amplifying all her senses. And was it just her or did he look extremely attractive in the low lights of the club?

Lacey took a dainty sip of the beer. Ugh, it was so watered down, it was kind of pathetic. But she winced anyway, "Jim, this is so strong."

She widened her hazel eyes at him in shock.

"Yeah, Lace, sometimes that happens with alcohol," Jim said.

Lacey nodded dumbly looking around the bar. She noted all the people staring at her, all the guys that were giving her the up down and suddenly felt bare with her short dress. It wasn't as short as her Academy regulated uniform but it was still pretty short and she wasn't wearing boots, so her entire freaking leg was exposed.

"Oh look Jim," Lacey said pulling his arm, "It's that green table thing with the balls and sticks!"

Lacey rushed over to the table and touched the felt, "I love this it always feels so soft."

Jim chuckled as he strode up behind her wrapping his arms around her waist.

"We should play," Lacey said brightly.

"I don't know sweat heart," Jim muttered, "I don't want to play against you because I would be immensely disappointed if I didn't win."

Lacey turned on a fake pout as she twisted out of Jim's arms. She scanned the crowd detecting a pair of overly muscular civilians. She winked subtly at Jim.

She spun out of Jim's arms and made her way to the pair of men.

"Hi," Lacey giggled, "My boyfriend and I want to play pool but we need someone to go against. Will you play with us?"

Lacey looked up at them through her eyelashes and blinked twice.

"I don't know doll," one of the men said with a smirk, "We've got a lot to do, lot's of booze to drink and darts to play."

"Oh no," Lacey said, "Please?"

She knew what was coming up. It was so easy. Hook, line and sinker some would say.

"Well," the other man said, "We could make this interesting. Put an incentive in it, you know? Just a goal to look towards since we're taking time out of our cluttered schedules."

"Okay," Lacey said bouncing up and down, "What do you want?"

The man raised his eyebrows, "You and your boyfriend Star Fleet cadets?"

"My boyfriend is," Lacey said with a grin.

"Well, tell your boyfriend that we'll play in exchange for a little tour of the star ships," idiot #1 said with a nod.

"Is this your bar?" Lacey asked randomly.

"Yeah it's mine," idiot #2 said with a nod and a smug smile.

"If you win you can get a 'tour' of a starship," Lacey said putting air quotes over tour, "And if we win, we get free drinks every time we come here."

Idiots 1 and 2 looked at each other and smirked and nodded. Lacey clapped as she led them down to Jim. Behind her she heard one of them whisper, 'easiest hustle ever'. Lacey smirked, which they couldn't see, but Jim saw and his eyes brightened. He knew it was a challenge and he was excited. The moment he and Lacey went out, he hadn't had a single thought about the Kobayashi Maru test. Lacey just had that ability to make her forget his hardships. It wasn't hard. Just a flash of her smile which caused her hazel eyes to sparkle made him forget his thoughts.

"Jim, I found people to play with," Lacey trilled.

"Hey," Jim said nodding at them. Jim appraised them. It was pretty complicated, they were complicated. It was usually the dumber ones that had the blankest expressions and the hardest masks to read. But Jim was pretty sure this wasn't their first hustle and they were experienced with the sport of pool.

One of their opponents racked all eight balls and the other held the cue ball. They all each had a cue stick and were ready to go.

"I'm Marcus that's Brent," the man who was racking the balls said nodding at his partner. He rolled the balls aligning them in the triangle and set it in the appropriate spot.

"So we all know the stakes," Brent said.

Lacey nodded excitedly.

"So we shake on it," Marcus said holding out his hand as his partner followed.

Lacey shook both their hands along with Jim.

Brent placed the cue ball on the opposite end of the table.

"Oh, can I go first," Lacey said holding up a hand excitedly, "I like it when they all split up, it's fun."

Brent smirked then nodded, "You can go first and you know what? We'll even let you go twice, just in case you miss the first time."

Lacey nodded seriously, "That's happen before. Thank you."

"What exactly did you bet Lacey?" Jim asked with wide eyes.

"Just a tour of your space ships," Marcus said with a smug look in his eye.

"What?" Jim asked.

"Don't worry Jim, we get free drinks if we win," Lacey said holding the cue stick aloft.

She positioned herself, rather poorly to begin with. That Brent character looked like he was about to laugh when he saw her form.

She lined up her shot with the cue ball and missed, on purpose, skidding the green felt of the pool table.

"Oh know," Lacey giggled, "I still get to go again right?"

"Go ahead sweat heart, take all the time you need," Brent said staring at her ass as she bent over the table.

Lacey rolled her eyes. It was such a miniscule eye roll that no one noticed but Jim. She lined up her shot and struck the cue ball which went barreling to the triangular set of pool balls. The cue ball struck the pool balls sharply sending all fifteen of the pool balls flying. Three solid colored balls went into both of the middle pockets and a striped ball in the upper left corner one.

Lacey straightened and smirked, "Looks like you're striped, we're solid."

Marcus and Brent stared at her in shock and Jim smirked smugly.

...

Jim and Lacey stumbled into Lacey's dorm building at two in the morning both giggling drunkenly. Lacey tripped and she and Jim snorted before laughing uproariously.

They made it to Lacey and Annie's apartment.

"Are you gonna come in Jim?" Lacey slurred, "Annie won't be there so she won't mind."

"But I gotta get back to my dorm," Jim protested weakly pointing out the window of the building.

"You're drunk Jim," Lacey snickered pulling him into her room as she kicked off her heals and Jim tugged his off falling before slowly recovering, "Come on."

She yanked him in just as Jim shut the door. The momentum and the rough tug sent them both off balance. With the drinks alone their centers of equilibrium were out of whack so that just made it crazier causing both of them to fall into the bed in a drunken heap.

Lacey burped once she hit the bed sending Jim into a round of uncensored giggles which filled the darkness of the room.


	4. Chapter 4

**Next Chapter. Enjoy!**

* * *

4.

There was a loud thump from the dorm next door. Lacey grunted at the sound, squeezing her already closed eyes together. Oh god, Mary starting it up again. Mary has tried, year after year to master the art of yoga. But she had the worst balance. Ever. It was pretty pathetic.

Lacey sighed and nuzzled into her warm bed. It was a lot comfortable than it normally was. But her head had a dull thump that sounded every once in a while. She let her hand slide over the sheets. They were softer than normal. Usually they were slightly scratchy and soft at the same time- Academy issued sheets and what not but today they were nice. She brought her hand back up to its original position and the mattress trembled.

Lacey opened her eyes quickly and her vision was filled with a tanned, skin tone mass in front of her. It was a chest. It was a man's chest.

"Holy shit," she whisper-yelled and tried to get up but she was pinned to the chest by the man's arm, which had an incredibly strong grasp on her person.

In an instant Lacey went into panic mode. They had won the pool game against dumb ass 1 and 2 and definitely milked their winnings by drinking more than planned. She had a fuzzy recollection of what had happened and she definitely did not remember going home with some stranger from a civilian bar. Oh gosh how did she get back to the Academy in this state? Was this man a civilian? She was positive that even in a somewhat drunken state she was more responsible than this. She had a firm policy against not sleeping with strangers.

God she's only had sex like three times in her twenty some odd years life. Now she could add sex with a complete strangers to her list of not so amazing achievements.

She winced. Moment of truth. Oh dear this is going to be awkward. She looked up slowly and saw Jim's sleeping face on one of her pillows. Lacey let out a deep sigh of relief and closed her eyes resting her throbbing head on his chest. Now that the adrenaline of the morning was over, her hangover was being known. It wasn't bad but her hangovers were never that bad.

Her head lifted off her chest and she nudged him with her forhead, "Jim, Jim, get up."

He groaned and twisted them over. Lacey gasped as her head hit the second pillow and Jim started using Lacey as a pillow. His nose brushed her clavicle and her face burned. He was so freaking close to her cleavage.

"Jim?" Lacey asked breathlessly.

"Last night was amazing," Jim said, his voice thick with sleep, "We definitely have to do that again."

"Yeah, last night was fun," Lacey said "But I don't know if I want to do that again."

"But you had such good flexibility," Jim protested, "You were my best so far."

"What?" Lacey asked. Her eyebrows furrowed then she chuckled. Was this his rehearsed wake up next to a stranger routine? Was this what all those 'lucky' ladies woke up to after his conquests?

"Jim, do you know who this is?" Lacey asked with a smirk.

"Of course," Jim said still half asleep and most likely hung over, "I don't forget my best."

Lacey burst out in fits of laughter. Jim woke up with a start, looking down at Lacey laughing and letting out little snorts here and there.

"You are so stupid," Lacey said in between laughs, "I can't believe THAT is what all of your woman have to look forward to when you wake up."

"Shut up, Lace, my head hearts," Jim groaned going back to using her as a pillow.

"Why the hell aren't you wearing a shirt?" Lacey asked.

"I don't know sometime in the night the Starfleet pin got all pokey and I had to take it off," Jim mumbled.

"You couldn't have just taken off the pin," Lacey said in a flat voice.

Jim rose his head to star at her in disbelief, "I'm barely coherent when I'm sleeping and I was drinking right before. You can't expect me to take off a pin in my strange mind of half consciousness."

"Can't expect you to command a ship either, huh?" Lacey said with a raised eyebrow.

"Low blow," Jim muttered assuming his original position on her chest.

Lacey brought her hand up to pet Jim's head.

"I am not a cat," Jim said but Lacey felt his smile when she started scratching his scalp.

"Oh," Lacey said when she felt him burrow his nose deeper into the hollow of her throat, "I think you like it."

Jim grabbed her wrists and pinned them next to her head. He stared down at her with a shit eating grin. Lacey smirked back up at him. Her heart was beating wildly.

"Hi," Lacey said with a small smile.

"Hello," Jim responded with his own bright grin.

Now she understood why all those girls didn't get all pissed off when they heard Jim's hangover filled morning greeting. James T. Kirk was quite the charmer and quite the looker in the morning. But Lacey shook these blasphemous thoughts out of her head. Friendship she thought. Unpaved terrain. She'd be giving up if she succumbed to whatever non platonic thought she harbored for her friend.

"So," Lacey said with her own shit eating grin, "I was your best huh?"

"Shut up," Jim protested.

"Never forget the name of your best huh?" Lacey teased trying to free her arms.

Jim immediately let go of her wrist to tickle her sides. She squealed and immediately begin to try and fight him off. He was resilient dodging her attempts to free herself. She was saved by the swift knock at her door.

Both froze and Lacey took the opportunity to knock Jim off of her and he fell on the floor in the space between her bed and the wall.

"Stay down Jim," Lacey said pointing at him.

"Why?" Jim asked poking his head and crossing his arms on the top of the mattress.

"Because," Lacey insisted staring at him intently, "I don't want anyone coming to assumptions about this."

Lacey fixed the strap of her bra and dress placing back onto her shoulder while straightening her dress skirt with her other hands.

"Who would do that?" Jim asked.

Lacey stopped fidgeting and stared at him with a disbelieving look, "Really?" Jim continued look at her blankly. "Just get down, Jim."

She turned to answer the door and Anna walked in.

"You look like you had a good time," Anna said looking her roommate up and down.

Lacey blushed and went back to fixing her dress and hair. Jim popped his head up yet again to get back on Lacey's bed. Anna widened her eyes at this and looked at Lacey fixing her wrinkled self. A large smirk started to form on the pretty Betazoid's face.

"My, my, my, did it finally happen?" Anna said slowly with a raised eyebrow, "Did innocent little Lacey finally succumb to her desires?"

"First off, nothing happened," Lacey said raising a finger, counting off her reasons, "Secondly, what? Thirdly, why do you assume that it was me who succumbed to desires? And lastly, where is your door pass?"

"So did you succumb?" Anna asked both girls ignoring Jim's smirk from Lacey's bed.

"Stop saying succumb," Lacey said putting her hands on her ears, "It's now the second worst word ever, ugh."

"Second, what's the first?" Anna asked sidetracked for a second.

"Moist," Jim answered.

Anna turned to him as if just remembering he was there. She stared at him with an appraising look as she raked her eyes down her body.

"Ain't that cute," Anna said, "He knows all about your weird little squeamish tendencies."

Lacey groaned and blushed. Then the day just got five times better when Nyota came rushing into her dorm, through the door Lacey forgot to close.

"Lacey," she rushed, fully dressed-prim and proper as always.

She looked so excited and mischievous then her dark eyes landed on Jim's half naked form stretched across HER bed. Her eyes widened.

Her eyes widened.

"You did not," Nyota said looking between her blonde best friend and the arrogant playboy, "Lace...please tell me you didn't."

Lacey huffed through her awful blush and embarrassment, "Why do you both think I was the one to initiate all this? And why do you think I would agree? Guys, seriously, do you know me at all?"

"Yeah, Lacey's too much of a goody two shoes," Jim said with a nod.

"Can it Jim," Lacey said, "What's up Nyota?"

Nyota fixed her stare on Lacey, "Well, looks like your turn on the Kobayashi Maru is on Monday."

Lacey paled, "Fantastic."

...

"Lacey," Jim said stopping her outside the testing chamber, "I want you to try and pass this damn thing."

"But," Lacey protested, "I don't want to be a commander. I was just going to scratch."

"No, Lace," Jim insisted, "You've got a creative mind maybe you'll be able to figure it out. But at least try and pass it. Show these guys that this test is passable."

"But you could retake it," Lacey said, "You could show them that the test is passable."

"I took this test twice already," Jim said with a sigh, "It isn't even about me passing it anymore, "It's about passing it in general."

Lacey rolled her eyes, "Jim you've been though more of the classes than I have, if you can't pass it, I can't. The only reason I'm doing this is because some fuddy duddy Admiral thought I had 'potential'."

"Still," Jim said, "Try Lacey. I'm rooting for you."

"Thanks," Lacey said with another eye roll.

Lacey sat in a commander's chair staring at her 'crew'. It was made up of people she didn't know. When they asked if she had any special request she said she didn't care. However, unlike others might have done with unlimited amounts of sass, Lacey could not do that to her superiors. She was too respectful.

"Um," Lacey said staring at the blackness and the specks in front of her.

The Klingon warships. Then she saw of on the side was the Kobayashi Maru ship. The freaking ship past the freaking neutral zone line in the area of hostility. What the hell did that ship do to land itself there? She rubbed her forehead brushing past a couple of curls that had escaped her usual braid.

"What are the level of the shields?" Lacey asked.

"We're at 6% and dropping and they're at full percentage," one of her crewmen stated.

Lacey stared at that accursed ship, the Kobayashi Maru. There was no way to win in this scenario. No way at all. If she went to get the ship, she would cross the Klingon Neutral Zone and that would definitely start a war of some kind and both her ship and the Kobayashi Maru would be destroyed. There was no way to win. It was most likely that the Kobayashi ship would go down and so would hers.

She bit her lip. As captain of her ship, her priority was her crewman. Lacey scanned the nameless faces working her ship and felt some kind of camaraderie with these people that she had never met before.

In a real life situation, which was what this test was supposed to simulate, it was her ship over theirs.

"We need to retreat," Lacey whispered standing up from her chair.

"What?" one of the men sitting at the controls said turning towards her with a look of shock, "You want to abandon the Kobayashi Maru?"

"We have to," Lacey said rubbing her forehead, "Warp speed away from the Neutral Territory."

The crew looked confused but followed her orders exactly. Lacey sat back down and sighed as the lights for the simulation turned back on to regular lighting of the Academy classes.

Admiral whats-his-face poked out through the door that had just opened with a swish, "Cadet Archer, can we talk in my office?"

Some of her 'crewmen' gave her sympathetic looks as she left, "Thank you for being my crewmen. It was lovely commanding you! Hope to see y'all again soon."

She bowed before arranging her face in a worried expression as she followed the old, retired admiral's retreating figure to his office. In his office he sat down slowly but she wasn't looking, she was staring intently at her Academy regulated black boots.

"Cadet Archer, I am here to tell you that you failed the Kobayashi Maru simulation," the Admiral informed her.

Lacey looked up and nodded, "No one has ever passed have they."

"No," the admiral said with a wry smile, "But no one and I mean no one has ever retreated and abandoned the ship."

Lacey licked her lips, "I thought it was the only solution."

"Why, dear?" the admiral said, truly puzzled.

"I saw the situation as a no win scenario, someone or both were going to die," Lacey explained using her hands to gesticulate her words further, something she did when she was extremely nervous and the stare of disbelief the old admiral was giving her made her extremely nervous, "So as commander and the holder of responsibility of my crewman and ship. And those crewman and ship are my number one priority."

"What about your fellow cadets, officers and commanders?" the admiral said, "What about them?"

Lacey froze before composed herself quickly, "My father died on the USS Radon, you know."

Her eyes drifted downwards again staring intently at the scuffing on her left toe, "The ship was abandoned in deep space. The crew was going crazy wondering why no other ship was going to their rescue. But their commander, Captain Pleater, told them that just like every other commander the crew meant the most. He told them if places were reversed he would have the lives of his crew held on the highest priority, above everyone else's."

"Yes I remember viewing the footage that was placed in one of the escape pods before the explosion," the admiral said with a sad shake of his head.

"Then you saw the reaction the crewmen had," Lacey said staring at the admiral. The tables were turned now, "They were about to go into mutiny before Captain Pleater went into the most famous motivational speech we study in Intergalactic History of Travel. This made the crew realize the bonds formed between the commander and the crewmen were strong. And those bonds were the same amongst all the star ships in Star Fleet."

"My daddy always said, since what happened on the USS Kelvin, crew comes first and the commander would sacrifice everything for his crew," Lacey said her eyes welling up slightly, "No matter the consequences of death or extreme guilty feelings or whatever. And that's what I thought about during that simulation. Even though I don't know any of those people there, and I went to school  
with them for two years, they were my crew and as seemingly selfish as it seemed, those people were my priority."

The admiral stared at her and Lacey held her breath waiting for the verbal slap she would receive.

Your selfish.

Your impossible.

That is the worst solution for this simulation he had ever seen.

Even though she didn't want to be a commander or a captain or an admiral, it was ingrained in her brain that failure was not something to accept lightly. Her mother, ever since her father's death, it had been civilian school, Star Fleet then her way onto a starship. Preferably the new starship they were building. At least that's what she was ordered by her mother through her weekly communications via screen conversations.

"I think you would make a wonderful captain," the old admiral told her with a warm smile, "A secret you are not allowed to share. Even with the young Cadet Kirk."

Lacey stared at him in shock.

"This test has no winning scenario, like you said. It is a test to show how a captain would react in a no-win situation. You showed a creative insight like we have not yet seen at the Academy. Everyone tries to be heroic and save the other ship, they forget about their own crew," the Admiral sighed, "I think it's because not everyone knows their crew as intimately as seasoned captains, or how I knew mine. I told that to the creator of the test but he said it was illogical."

Lacey nodded, "You see that is why I don't think I will make a good captain. I am not selfless, I would not be able to live with myself if I was forced to choose in that situation. I am a follower and I readily admit it. Others are born leaders, I am not."

Never in her life had Lacey taken lead. Her life was guided by her mother's hand and her dead father's memory. At school she followed her more exuberant friends lead in situations and Jim's suggestions unless it is something stupid like streaking in the park.

Even though Lacey hadn't chosen to follow a medical path at Star Fleet, she had grown to be accustomed to the way of a nurse. She liked it, looked forward to being a nurse in a starship even.

"I've made my decision to be a nurse," Lacey said with a smile.

The admiral nodded and she left the office.


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note:**

**Next Chapter!**

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* * *

5.

Jim had rushed up to Lacey moments after she exited the old admirals office. Once she saw his blue eyes, alight with excitement and mischief, she thought back to her meeting with the old admiral. She remembered him telling her that what he told her about the Kobayashi Maru test was not to be shared with Jim or any other cadet going the commander way at the Academy. Also, she realized that she still didn't ask what the old admiral's name was.

"So Lace, what's the verdict," Jim said eagerly, "I heard from one of the members from your mock crew that you abandoned the Kobayashi Maru."

"The verdict is true, though I bet it was said scathingly or mockingly, like I had done something bad," Lacey said with a slight scoff, "I failed the test like the numerous other cadets before me. I stand by my decision nonetheless."

Jim shook his head, "Why?"

"Why I decided not to use guerilla warfare and play the role of overzealous hero?" Lacey asked. Jim nodded and Lacey continued, "Because I'm not you, Jim, I don't have the balls."

Jim gave her an amused look. Lacey stuck her tongue out at him.

"And that's why," Lacey started with a deep sigh, "That's why I am fully behind you retaking the simulation, if you decide you want to."

Jim's aloof cheerfulness faded and he gave her a serious look he didn't normally see, "What do you mean Lacey?"

"What I mean is," Lacey said trying to formulate her words clearly, "Jim, the admiral told me something that made me realize: you are a born leader."

"Yes I know thank you," Jim said with a cocky smirk.

"Your cute but shut up, I'm trying to be nice," Lacey said with an eye roll, "No I mean Jim, you are a leader. When you talk people listen. And you've been down in the dump, don't deny it, because you can't pass this damn simulation. The stupid Kobayashi Maru test, that no one else can. I know why it means so much to you. I understand. It's one part arrogance two parts living up to some imagined expectations from a dead parent."

"I tried to be commander, but I'm not selfless," Lacey said with a small smile, "If that simulation was real life, I would probably have a panic attack and puke on the floor of the ship. The only reason I did well was because I was purely and utterly annoyed."

"But Jim, you took the damn thing two times, people stop at the first time. You want to prove something and even though I think it's not logical, to hell with logic. I think it's admirable."

Jim just stared at Lacey. This girl was five foot two inches, had curly blonde hair and was the epitome of fragile and there she was standing there in front of him, slightly pink in the face and bright eyed. Even Bones said he shouldn't take the test and that it didn't matter. But Lacey got it and that made Jim smile. He never really cared if he passed or failed, he just wanted to make his name known. And if it had to be as the person who took the Kobayashi Maru until he knew that test inside and out, so be it. But now Jim was going to pass that damn simulation.

...

Lacey sat on Jim's bed in his dorm room. She was reclining on Jim's back reading her PADD, as he laid on his stomach reading some reviews, from his own PADD resting on his pillow, from other Kobayashi Maru simulations cadet graduates trying to eliminate different scenarios so that he could succeed in the end.

Lacey looked away from the PADD that she held above her head putting it on her stomach to give her arms a break. She stared at the back of Jim's head as he poured through old reports. She smiled slightly, he was going to do what no other cadet had done. She knew he'd find a way to pass. Eliminating variables was a way to do it.

Lacey turned back to her PADD touching the screen so that she was reading the medical reports her father had taken while on the USS Kelvin.

It was a kind of nostalgia for her.

She read it when she wanted to talk with her father and now after taking the Kobayashi Maru test and being told she had potential to be a captain, she would have wanted to talk to someone about it. For a moment she thought about calling her mom to ask her about it but she was probably busy off planet somewhere. Or off with a new boyfriend.

Her mother had become quite the player, having an almost Jim-like reputation, after her father died. Merriam Archer left her only daughter with a nanny for her formative and teenage years until she decided to go the way of her father and join Star Fleet. Lacey stared up at her PADD seeing the words she had already memorized.

She sat up and moved her body so her head was lying next to Jim's PADD so that her head and the inanimate object were sharing his pillow.

Jim looked away from his own PADD to look at Lacey. Her eyebrows were furrowed and her face was scrunched in concentration.

"What's up Lace?" Jim asked.

"That old fart of an admiral told me I had potential to be captain," Lacey said, "Or at least part of the command."

"Really?" Jim said, "Good or bad?"

"That's the thing, Jim," Lacey sighed, "I don't know. I mean, I signed up to be part of medical, to be a nurse and I don't mind it. I mean I've been doing it for two years and it's starting to grow on me but what if I'm not reaching my potential?"

"What do you mean?" Jim asked his own eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

"I mean I signed up for Star Fleet to be a nurse," Lacey said with a pause, "To be a nurse, for my father. I mean everyone always tells me my father could save any life in front of him, and I just wish I could be that good. At least give him something to be proud of. But now I'm being told, I'm a good captain. And I'm just wondering if maybe in some other alternate universe I was a captain, and a damn good one, but I'll never know unless I take the plunge."

Jim looked at her, "Once a wise person told me that I was a natural born leader. Now my question to you is: do you think you are?"

"Um, maybe?' Lacey said uncertainly.

"And that's exactly how I know you aren't," Jim said, "Not to be an ass or anything, but you would know if that was what you want."

"But Jim, I don't know what I want," Lacey said sitting up and putting her head in her hands, "I told the man I'm not selfless, I have a lot of fears and I can't just go into things on instinct."

Jim just nodded.

"I'm not good at giving people orders, I take them, I like helping people and I mean I follow you with every stupid thing you do," Lacey said.

"I take offense to that, nothing I do is ever stupid," Jim started but Lacey didn't notice.

"Oh my gosh," Lacey said, "I am so over thinking this, I can't be a captain. It's like I said before, panic attack and puke."

She started poking Jim on the shoulder excitedly, "You helped me."

"Helped you figure out what you already knew," Jim muttered.

"But you helped me anyway," Lacey said.

She clapped excitedly, "I must be getting my period soon, I'm over analyzing everything, this is not okay."

Jim looked scandalized but then smiled slightly when Lacey attacked him with a hug, "Thank you Jim."

"For helping you figure out what you already knew?" Jim asked.

"No, well yes, thank you for helping me, talking with me and just being my best friend," Lacey said squeezing him.

Leonard walked into their dorm looked at Lacey hugging Jim and scowled, "No fornicating, I'm here now."

Jim let go of Lacey and went back to his PADD.

"Hey Leonard," Lacey said with a wave from her spot next to Jim.

"Hey," Leonard greeted looking at Lacey and Jim's position.

He smirked slightly. It was probably the first time Jim had ever been on a bed with a girl without making a move, but then again it was Lacey. Jim's biggest secret. The smirk on Leonard's face grew, this would be fun.

"So, Lace," Leonard said raising an eyebrow, "How are you?"

"Oh I'm great," Lacey said excitedly, "I don't want to be a captain."

Leonard just stared at her then recovered quickly, "That's great, if your ever in doubt again I can have you as my assistant again, you looked like you were having fun with that."

"Yeah, it was great," Lacey said with a smile standing up.

"It was definitely the best surgery," Leonard said with a snort, "You're probably the only competent nurse, but I could be biased. And probably the prettiest."

Lacey froze and blushed a soft pink. Jim's head perked up and he glared at Leonard.

"If you ever need any help, or someone to talk to, I'm here," Leonard said raising his eyebrows to send her a message that he was teasing.

Lacey relaxed with a smile while Jim tensed, "Well thanks Leo. I have to go Jim, I'm meeting Annie to study."

"Bye Lace," Jim said still glaring at Leonard.

"See ya," Leonard said meeting Jim's gaze.

As soon as Lacey closed the dorm door behind her Jim said in outrage, "What the hell Bones?"


	6. Chapter 6

**Next Chapter!**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

6.

"Such language Jimmy boy," Leonard reprimanded pulling his PADD from his med bag.

"Shut up," Jim said standing up and running a hand through his hair, "What were you doing?"

"Offering help to the only capable nurse in her year?" Leonard offered with a raised eyebrow and a smirk.

"You didn't need to tell said nurse that she was pretty," Jim sneered.

"Well it was the truth," Leonard said, still with a shit eating grin, "Why? Do you not think the lovely Miss Archer is NOT pretty?"

"No of course I do," Jim said, "You know that, but you don't need to go around telling her that. You'll give her the wrong idea."

"What?" Leonard said, teasingly affronted, "Afraid she'll realize others think she's as pretty as you do and make a move?"

Bones of course was kidding. He knew Jim didn't think of Lacey that way, they were too close of friends, almost like siblings. Did almost everything together. From studying to bar hopping. Lacey Archer was the only other person, other than himself, that could handle Jim's blunt, somewhat teasingly arrogant, and at times incredibly flirtatious mannerisms in large doses instead of small. Bones and Jim had an extra to their duo. But that didn't last two weeks. They didn't talk about it. It was awkward and Jim wasn't used to not being loved by all.

But he saw a look in Jim's eyes when he mentioned the possibility of others going after the third member of their triforce and he was shocked. Jim and...Lacey. Like he said Lacey was gorgeous but not Jim's type at all. Sure she was blonde but Jim liked them ready and willing.

And in all the time he had known her Lacey had stuttered her way through two relationships each a matter of months long.

Leonard closed his eyes. This was going to be a problem, he just knew it. He opened them again and the look on Jim's face was gone as soon as the possibility was mentioned. Maybe he had imagined it. It was JIM. Leonard smirked to himself as he went down on his bed typing away on his PADD.

...

The next year...

Lacey walked out of her dorm and breathed a sigh. It was her third year at this Academy. She was going to become a nurse soon, one more year to go and she'll either become a nurse for the Academy or she'll go on a starship. She took a deep breath, she hoped with all her heart for a position on a ship, on any ship. An explorer ship, a freighter, a government ship, just a starship. She wanted to see space, to see the universe, to go on other planets.

She rubbed her temples, still holding her PADD that was full of links to notes, to textbooks, to schedules. Schedules. That reminded her, she needed to see Leo.

She walked quickly to where Leonard had his...well actually she didn't know what Leonard did while Jim and she had lectures and classes. He was already a doctor before Star Fleet and the Academy, so he didn't need extensive training. She knew he held mock surgeries due to this factor, but what else did he do? Huh. He was still a cadet, technically, since he hadn't been assigned to a starship. But obviously he would be chief medical officer when this happened, because despite his atrocious bedside manners, the man was a brilliant doctor. Definitely intimidating which could be taken as commanding at times, so he could lead a medical team and whatnot.

Maybe being a land doctor was different than being a space doctor? That must be it. Lacey shook her head to herself, which must have looked strange but most cadets in her year knew that she lived predominately in her mind.

"Leo," Lacey called opening the doors to his quarters.

"Ah, decided to take me up on your offer, Lace?" Leonard asked.

Lacey laughed before shaking her head, "No, I just wanted to know if you know anything about James and the Kobayashi Maru test."

"Well the dingbat decided he wanted to take the test for the third time," Leonard said with a sigh from his seat behind a desk.

"When?" Lacey asked concerned for her friend.

"In two weeks," Leonard said with a grimace.

"Where is he now?" Lacey wondered aloud.

"Probably getting out of a class," Leonard said, "I don't know the schedule for classes for the cadets in the Command School."

"I'm going to look for him, moral support and what not," Lacey said with a grin, "Have fun doing whatever it is you do with your time."

Lacey waved Leonard good bye before leaving his room and the academy. The Medical Academy was in a different portion of the campus from the main building and the command school. It took some time to get there and she ran into Jim coming out from class.

"Jim," Lacey called, "Leo told me you signed up to take the test again. How are you feeling?"

"Pretty good, I've been going through old records and whatnot," Jim said, "I've eliminated enough possibilities to have a higher chance to win this test."

"That reminds me," Lacey started, "How did you get the records of old tests? The Kobayashi Maru is secret from cadets outside the Command school, I was lucky to know because you are a rebel and Leo was part of your 'crew' and took some commanding courses. But none of the test files are recorded on any public library database."

"Well, I think one of the admirals took pity on me and gave me his password," Jim said with a shrug, "Happens sometimes."

Lacey nodded before Jim interrupted, "Why aren't you in class?"

"No I have late classes today," Lacey said with a bright smile, "You've been studying none stop I heard one of the other cadets call you a pile of books with legs."

Jim rolled his eyes. Lacey wondered what he was thinking in that big old brain of his. Contrary to popular belief, Jim was more than just a hot body and apparently a good shag. He was practically a genius, just had rebellious tendencies and an arrogant streak. But a genius no less. She knew when they debated controversies when bored or having just learned about them in the few classes they shared first year of Academy. She loved that about him. How he was passionate about learning new things. He didn't broadcast it because he never felt he needed to. Jim was very content in leaving people to make their own assumptions about him. He enjoyed watching people judge him based on his looks at their first glance.

That's why he enjoyed frequenting bars. It was easy to get quick relationships, meaningless ones, without any bonds or needs between both parties. He didn't need to try which fed the lazy side of him that didn't always show up in his studying habits but more in his relationships with other people.

Lacey was lucky to see pasta his charming, womanizing ways. Because the Jim Kirk on the inside was ten times more attractive than the one he showed to other people.

"That's definitely different than the other observations I get," Jim said quirking an eyebrow at her.

"Definitely different," Lacey said lacing her arm through his and leaning against him.

He looked good in his red cadet uniform, Lacey thought as she looked at the red sleeved hand entwined with her own civilian style black long sleeved shirt with Starfleet Medical across her chest and an old pair of 21st century styled civilian jeans as they walked back towards the dorm buildings where all the cadets lived no matter what field they were studying in, Xenolinguistics, Command School, Navigation, the Medical Academy or even the Corps of Engineering. The cadets weren't separated by field, Command cadets and Engineering ones lived together, ect.

"Different good?" Jim asked.

"Definitely good, in my humble opinion," Lacey said fluttering her eyelashes at him teasingly.

"Good," Jim said pleased.

...

Classes were interesting, the usually were. But they were the same kind of interesting which tended to get boring after the repetition. But it was hours since her last class of the day which ended 2200 hours, so she had a while before the men started getting frisky.

She watched Jim walk over to order their drinks when she overheard a conversation between two other cadets in a table next to them.

"He is so gorgeous," one of them sighed.

"Sure, but what's up in that skull of him, dusty screws and cogs that only starts working during sex," the other answered cynically, "Not attractive in the long run."

"It doesn't need to do the long run," the first contradicted, "Everyone knows all he's good for is mind blowing sex and if you're good enough, you'll be able to get another round in the hay."

Lacey froze, angered by the two shallow girls. Honestly, anyone could say boys were materialistic, but girls were exactly the same. The body is what you saw first, so being non-Vulcan, subjective humans, it was easy to make judgments based on appearance.

Jim returned back to Lacey without any drinks, "Sorry to bail on you Lacey, but I met that girl over there," Lacey craned her neck to look and saw a girl with brown eyes and blonde hair-much whiter than her own and grinned at Jim, "So I'm going to try my luck with her."

"Oh and you found her all by yourself, I'm so proud," Lacey cooed standing up to leave.

Jim glared at her, "For your information, I said you were helpful."

"You said I was essential to your game," Lacey interrupted.

"Not essential," Jim said with an eye roll, "Just helpful."

"Whatever you sayyyyyy," Lacey trilled.

Jim snorted before leaving his friend and going to the girl. Lacey let out a breath of relief. She loved Jim like a brother but she had late classes so she just wanted to go to bed and read one of her old books. Her great grandmother had given it to her, it was made of paper like the pictures she had seen in her history text books from before Starfleet. It was calming, she realized, especially in this bar with pounding music and sweaty bodies. Calm is what she wanted.

She caught Jim's eye from behind the girl's back and she pointed out the door then waved. He blinked twice, their signal for okay or all set.

She stood up from her bar seat and looked over to the two girls who were talking about Jim before. An Andorian and a Human. They stared at her in shock, obviously seeing her interaction with Jim from earlier. She stared down at them and smirked letting the two know that she had heard him ad she was offended.

Lacey savored their shocked face before leaving the bar in her usual dramatic exit.

...

Back in her bed Lacey was warm in her Starfleet sweat suit under her covers reading one of her old paperback books. This was called Pride and Prejudice, one of her favorites, humans from way back were...fascinating-to coin one of Nyota's favorite words. Gotten from Spock of course.

Annie stormed through their dorm door into their room angrily. She threw her bag onto her bed and put her hands on her hips.

"What's up, Annie?" Lacey asked putting her book down and sitting up straighter in her bed.

"I'll tell you what is up," Annie said enunciating all her words, "Your friend Jim's penis is what's up."

"Yeah, he was trying to score a hot date at the bar when I left," Lacey said confused. Annie didn't normally talk about Jim unless they were having gossip sessions with Nyota and Gaila.

"Well, when I went through the bar, he stopped talking to a bottle blonde-gave her the slip, then proceeded to proposition me," Annie said her face twisting in disgust, her black eyes glinting with displeasure, "It was disgusting, violating."

"What?" Lacey said her face full of shock.

"He came up to me, gave me a margarita and said, and I quote," Annie said starting to gesticulate wildly, "We can go back to my dorm, if you do me a favor. He said he needed my engineering expertise."

"What?!" Lacey shouted slightly.

"I know," Annie said, angrily pacing, "As if he needs to give an incentive to have sex with me. If the time comes and I decide he is worthy of my time, it will be because he is on his knees begging, I'm going to repeat begging for emphasis, _begging_ for release into my body. I'm not going to pimp myself out. It's like doing his homework for a quick time with him. He's not God's gift to womankind, I've probably had better."

Lacey flicked her eyes back and forth, "So he struck out with that girl, obviously, and saw you-very pretty and sexually alluring- and tried his luck."

"Tried his luck, my ass," Annie said sitting on the foot of Lacey's bed, "He came to me as if he was doing ME a favor. Like his sex was worth thousands of credits and he was doing ME a favor by letting me have sex with him, in return I perform a basic engineering thing for him."

"Did he say what it was?" Lacey asked trying to make sense of the situation.

"No," Annie said, "And let me get this straight, I am not a whore. I am not a prostitute. I CHOOSE to have sex with men because I WANT to. He can go take his whatever reputation and shove it up his," Annie paused holding her finger in the air, "alright, I admit it-he has a fine ass."

Lacey let out a half hearted laugh as Annie stood up and walked to her bed. Lacey picked up her book and started to read. But even her favorite paperback couldn't keep her mind distracted.

What did Jim need with an engineer that he would have sex in order to get it? The sex part wasn't hard to decipher. Her would have sex either way, Annie was just too proud. But why did he need an engineer? He would have told her if anything was wrong. Why didn't he tell her?

Lacey sighed putting her book away. She wasn't her girlfriend. She was acting clingy.

She stared Annie who was laying in bed asleep, still in her dress. Annie was pretty, extremely so. Lacey licked her lips, Annie was Jim's type: the strong confident woman who knew what she wanted and how she wanted it. He didn't want a bookish, small girl like her. Not one who could count her sexual exploits on one hand. Lacey wasn't confident, not like Annie or Gaila or even Nyota.

Annie and Gaila were sexually confident because they were beautiful and exotic. Both were smart as well, vying for the top ten in their Engineering year. The complete package. Every human man's wet dream to have sex with an alien beauty.

Even thought Nyota was a human, she still looked exotic with her cocoa skin and high cheekbones. She was bold, going after a Vulcan, hoping for romance, even though it was known throughout the Federation that Vulcans only bonded with other Vulcans, save a rare few. But Nyota still went for it. And she had succeeded. Didn't say anything, but Lacey could figure it out by herself.

She was surrounded by confident women who were secure with themselves. She, library lady Lacey. She sighed again turning the lights off with a touch of the control panel.

Jim wouldn't like a girl like her. Why was she still hoping? Oh yeah, Lacey thought sarcastically, because he was gorgeous, handsome, tall, confident, had the most mesmerizing blue eyes, a great brain and held stimulating conversation. Everything she wanted. But it was fiction. Not reality.

As the Vulcans would say: the hope that a relationship between herself and Jim would be illogical.

* * *

**So as you can tell, it's Jim's third time at the Maru test, so we're approaching the movie-verse time and more interaction with the rest of the gang! So get excited!**

**Rate, Review and Favorite!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's Note:**

**Next Chap! Welcome to the Movie-verse.**

**Okay so disclaimer time. I don't own Star Trek in any of its forms. But I didn't have the movie on me to write this chapter so I used some of the parts of Star Trek-the novel written after the movie happened or whatever. But I used that...so yeah. Don't own it either...**

**Well...Enjoy!**

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7.

Lacey was walking in the main building of the Academy with her nose buried in her PADD when an arm hooked itself through hers and spun the unsuspecting blonde in a one hundred eighty degree circle.

Lacey reluctantly lifted her eyes from her PADD where she was frantically sifting through her notes from the Med class she just had an exam in. She was frazzled, her frizzy hair had to be let out of her standard braid in order to run nervous fingers through it. So to say her hair had volume was an understatement. To say it had a life of its own would be more accurate.

Her hazel eyes met the dark brown ones of Nyota who had began to steer her in the direction of the exit to the Academy to the Student's Quarters.

"Nyota," Lacey whined, "Where are we going? I wanted to go speak with my professor, I just took an exam."

Nyota continued to tug her to the exert.

"Wait you were taking an exam too, why are you done?" Lacey asked, clutching tightly to her PADD.

"Got out early," Nyota said, "You don't have any other classes so we're going to my dorm because I need to tell you some things...about my personal life."

At this Lacey perked up, "Like you and Spock?" She said this with a big smirk.

"Stop smirking," Nyota scowled, "You're acting like Jim, spending all that time with him."

Lacey snorted, "Speaking of Jim, two weeks ago, he tried hitting on Annie."

Nyota let out a groan then a sigh, "That must have been lovely, what did she say?"

"She turned him down," Lacey said looking at Nyota, her small face showing the shock she had felt previously to a war blooded humanoid turning down Annie or a breathing female of any race turn down Jim. It was shocking in any perspective.

"Did she, now?" Nyota mused, her mind going into overtime, "Did she say why? You know she has that thing for him ever since she proclaimed he was 'off limits' due to circumstances."

"Apparently, he needed her to perform some kind of engineering thing," Lacey said with a shrug.

"Interesting," Nyota said, "How do you feel about this?"

"I should feel something about this?" Lacey wondered, now confused.

"I guess-maybe-I thought," Nyota said, her language capabilities failing her as she tried to formulate her sentence, "I thought that you would bothered by your best friend wanting to sleep with your roommate." Nyota looked confused but then controlled her confusion to her usual masked of confidence and self assuredness.

"No, I'm not bothered," Lacey said slowly, "Should I be?"

"Well, yes," Nyota said, "I thought you had feelings for Jim."

Lacey felt a slight twinge in her stomach but raised an eyebrow at Nyota with a wry smile, "If I had feelings for him would I be going to bars and hooking him up with other women?"

"I'm sorry," Nyota shrugged, "I just thought since you're with him at every single moment of every single day with him, I don't know."

"Don't worry, Nyota," Lacey said with a grin, "You're still my best friend. I won't bump you for Jim if you don't bump me for Spock."

Nyota broke her mask and glanced down at Lacey with a big grin, "No problem, Lace."

As the two women were walking back to the student quarters of the Academy Lacey thought about the little stomach twinge she got when Nyota told her she thought Lacey had feelings for Jim. Sure she had feelings for Jim, but wasn't that a thing about friendships with the sex you are attracted to. She spent an extended amount of time with Jim, even more so than Leonard on some days. She knew the man was intelligent, she knew he was attractive and she also knew he made great conversation which was a plus. Jim Kirk was pretty much everything she ever wanted in a man.

But then again, he was what more than sixty percent of Star Fleet wanted in a man.

Nyota opened the door to her room and as it slid open the two women were faced with Gaila, the now overly excited to see them Orion.

Nyota walked up to the bed while Gaila smiled up at them, "I thought you were taking finals." Gaila said this in a over eager, louder than normal room.

Lacey quirked her eyebrow at her green friend wondering why she was splayed on her bed in her underwear. Her eyebrow went up higher when Nyota proceeded to take off her boots and her cadet uniform.

"Well," Lacey said before Nyota interrupted her, a little bit briskly.

"I finished early. I was working in the language lab. We're picking up a lot of chatter, something about a prison escape and a stolen vessel that destroyed an entire Klingon fleet. Why? What's wrong?" Nyota asked, slightly innocent.

"We've been running simulations all week," the green girl explained, "I'm just catching up on some rest. Tired, very tired."

"Well, then we should go," Lacey said starting to walk backwards to leave before she heard a slightly muffled noise coming from somewhere...under Gaila?

"We have a proverb where I come from," Nyota started with a sigh, "'A sweet taste does not remain forever in the mouth.' Were you running simulations with the mouth breather hiding under your bed? Or did you mean 'stimulations'."

Lacey snickered while Gaila sent her a scandalized look, "Sorry G but that was kind of funny. So who's the lucky guy...or gal, I can never get a good enough read on..."

The mouth breather jumped up and Lacey looked up at a familiar face.

"Jim?" Lacey said incredulously, "First Annie now Gaila?"

"Hey, I got one," he volunteered ignoring Lacey, "'A man on the ground cannot fall'."

Lacey just stared up at Jim incredulously, a very unclothed Jim, but it's not that she hadn't seen him like this before, but still. These were two girls that had showered him with affections when Lacey first introduced all of them and he had turned both of them down. But now, two years later he was trying for both of them? What was his angle?

"That's a South African proverb. I'm not from South Africa."

"And thus by such stealthy means we draw ever nearer to your actual first name," Jim said with a cocky smirk. Lacey shook her head not wanting to hear the rest of this conversation.

"You know," Lacey said successfully walking backwards holding her PADD as a shield of some kind, "I'll just see you later."

And with that she rushed out of the room following the corridor back to hers she pushed some buttons and waited for the door to swing open for her. On Annie's bed was the female betazoid and a man of some form...a humanoid of some kind. What was with everyone today? Everyone was just getting with everyone.

"Annie," Lacey called ignoring their partial nudity with a determined expression.

"Kind of busy, Lace," Annie moaned as the man kissed down her neck.

"It'll just be a second," Lacey brushed off, "What exactly did Jim want two weeks ago?"

"What?" Annie asked now focusing her eyes at her roommate.

"The engineering thing that Jim asked you to do in favor of sex," Lacey said, "What exactly was the engineering thing?"

"He wanted me to reprogram something," Annie said going back to her previous activities.

"Did he tell you what it was?" Lacey urged.

"Couldn't say," Annie said with a loud groan making Lacey wince, "Confidential."

"Thanks, Annie," Lacey said rushing out of the room still clutching her PADD. As the doors slid shut her body shuddered violently as if purging her entire being from the noises and images that came with witnessing Annie in the act of...fornication.

Lacey grimaced. She never enjoyed sex thinking back on it. It was always extremely awkward for her. The whole sweaty body on sweaty body and moaning. She wasn't a fan of moaning. How Jim and Gaila and Annie could moan in front of complete strangers was beyond her comprehension. Maybe she was just self conscious about her moan. But all moans were weird. Right?

Lacey shuddered again this time purifying her body of all things sex related for the time being. She had seen more unclothed skin in one day than she had in a year. Everyone around her was just so comfortable with themselves and their nudity. Or maybe she was old fashioned. Whatever.

Lacey sighed before going back to what she had learned from Annie. Jim wanted to reprogram something. Confidential. It was so glaringly obvious. It was the program of the Kobayashi Maru test. He was going to cheat.

She closed her eyes. Damn it Jim. What are you doing with yourself?

* * *

**Review, Favorite, Follow! It's extremely uplifting.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Author's Note:**

**Short chapter...will update soon after the holidays. Merry Christmas to those who celebrate it. Have a happy holiday!**

**I still don't own Star Trek...at all...but I might be getting the DVD for Christmas...**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

8.

Lacey was walking around frantically searching the faces of her fellow cadets. She spotted Jim and Leonard walking side by side towards the assembly hall.

"Hey guys, what is this for?" Lacey asked furrowing her brows together and pulled her skirt down slightly.

"Probably my coronation," Jim said with a smug smile looking off in the distance.

"Your cute," Lacey said with a raised eyebrow.

"I made valedictorian," he surmised boastfully, "I bet that's what this is. Or they're going to give me special notice for being the first cadet to solve the Kobayashi scenario. Or they're going to announce a commendation on top of the valedictorian award."

Lacey gave him a grimace while Leo just rolled his eyes, "You might be constipated on account of you being so full of shit."

Lacey giggled, "If you elevate yourself any more you risk breaking gravity and drifting off the planet. I don't think you even need a spaceship to get to space."

"Yeah," Jim said still looking dazed, "A simple space suit will due."

"Where would they find one to fit your big head?" Leo asked flashing Lacey a smug grin. Lacey threw her head back and laughed until Jim stated, "Don't be jealous."

Leo frowned, "Jealous? I'm not jealous. I'm excited. I'll finally be able to write the first scientific paper on a cadet who died from brain hemorrhaging due to a surplus of ego."

Lacey smirked, "I'll definitely want in on that...credit me as the co author already."

The trio walked into the hall and Jim started for the front.

"Don't you want to sit in the back so you can walk towards the back of the hall and bask in the glory?" Leo asked sarcastically.

"Not a good idea, I might trip," Jim said.

Lacey chuckled as they picked their seats. Leo and Jim were still bickering but she was scanning the crowd for Nyota but there was no success. What she did see was the old admiral that 'believed' in her. Next to Captain Pike-a name of an important bridge officer she did know because he was Jim's self designated mentor.

The old admiral stood up and the entire hall fell silent when he spoke, "James T. Kirk. Step forward."

Jim shot Leo a smug look and Lacey's felt something sink in her. She knew he thought they were going to congratulate him but that wasn't the case. She knew he had cheated. Lacey closed her eyes as Jim stood. He was going to be so screwed. Oh gosh, it almost physically pained her. The look on his face was so confident but that was going to go away soon. She was wincing, waiting for everything to crumble.

The admiral began to speak Lacey started to cringe for real.

"An incident has occurred," the admiral said, "That concerns the entire student body. Academic immorality by one is an assault on us all. It will not be allowed to stand. Cadet Kirk, evidence has been submitted to this council suggesting you violation Seventeen four-three pursuant to the Starfleet Code of Ethical Conduct. Is there anything you care to say before we begin?"

Oh my god Jim was on trial. They wanted him to crack under the pressure and falter and whimper and beg for forgiveness. But Jim was as stubborn as a mule. She could already see in his eyes that backing down was not an option.

"Yes sir, I do. I believe I have the right under the same code of conduct to face my accuser directly," Jim stated with slight sass. But the admiral couldn't' ignore this as he looked behind him.

Someone stood up. Holy shit it was Commander Spock. Yup. Jim challenged a Vulcan. There was no way. He just couldn't. Oh dear, Jim was going to fight him. The most stubborn human she knew was going to embark on a verbal debate with a Vulcan.

Logic versus stubbornness. It was enough to make a grown man cry with frustration.

Lacey watched the Commander walk forward. He was the programmer of the test.

"Cadet Kirk, this is Commander Spock, one of our most distinguished graduates. He's programmed the Kobayashi Maru test for the last four years."

"Cadet Kirk," the Vulcan started, "It has become clear that you activated a subroutine that had been embedded in the programming code, an insertion that somehow succeeded in evading all protective firewalls and resets, thereby changing the conditions of the test."

"Your point being?" Jim asked with slight sass making Lacey smile slightly.

"In academic vernacular," the admiral stated coldly, "you cheated."

Oh dear Lacey thought.

"The programmed the test to be unwinnable," Kirk said with a slight eye roll, "The test itself is a cheat."

"Your argument precludes the possibility of a no win scenario," Spock stated.

Lacey chewed her lip and looked at Bones who just stared at the two men standing in front of the council. "I don't believe in no win scenarios."

"Then not only have you violated the rules, you have failed to understand the principle lesson that is embodied in the test."

"Please enlighten me," Jim said continuing his sass.

"Gladly. A captain cannot cheat death. I was certain that you of all people would understand this," Spock said.

Lacey sat up straight with wide eyes. He did not just say that. She had learned that Vulcans did not think like humans do, that they do not understand sarcasm or how their words affect humans emotionally but there was something in the Vulcans voice that made it seem as though he knew exactly how much he affected the human. She continued to chew on her lip, nervously awaiting Jim's next move.

"Me of all people?" Jim asked sounding confused but Lacey knew he knew exactly what Spock was talking about.

Lacey was distracted from Jim's reply by a man walking into the room. Her eyes narrowed as they followed his path to the admiral in the front of the council. The words of Jim and Spock were mute as the admiral read the PADD the man had brought into the hall.

"This is a Red Alert-all officers are to report to duty stations. All graduating cadets report to your barracks' officers in hangar one for immediate assignment. This is not a drill. I repeat-this is not a drill."

"Sir what is going on," Spock asked as the rest of cadets stood up and scrambled.

"Vulcan is under attack," the admiral said.

Lacey caught Uhura's eye and she nodded. Lacey tilted her chin down once before following Bones to Jim.

Jim just stared after Spock.

"Who was that pointy-eared bastard?" he asked.

"I don't know," Leonard said, "But I like him."

"Course you do," Lacey muttered with an eye roll, "Come on we have to go to the main hanger."


	9. Chapter 9

**Author's Note:**

**Next chapter!**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

9.

"Why are you coming on the hanger?" Leonard demanded, "You don't graduate for two more years."

Lacey gave Leonard a glare, "Do you honestly think I would let you two go out into deep space without saying goodbye, at least."

Jim looked distracted still reeling over his trial most likely. The trio entered the main hanger where Lacey saw hundreds of cadets running around, names were called off and said cadets hurried off to their assigned ship once their name was called immediately.

Lacey looked on with envy, she wanted to go on a space ship. But she knew she was qualified yet. Starfleet was racing around to scrounge up cadets and officers to help Vulcan but she wouldn't be allowed to go. Unlike some command positions and engineering ones, the cadet didn't have to be near graduation in order to go into a ship during emergency situations. But for medical cadets they needed to graduate before they were qualified.

It was so unfair.

But necessary because Lacey wasn't completely ready she didn't have much application study just conceptual. She'd probably freak if anything happened. Her anxiety was completely adjusted to handle real world illness.

Lacey listened closely to catch the tail end of the position assignments: Blake! U.S.S. Newton! Jaxa! The U.S.S. Endeavor! Counter! U.S.S. Odyssey! T'nag! The U.S.S. Antares! Fugeman: Regula One! Gerace: Pomoroy! The U.S.S. Oddyssey! U.S.S. Farragut! McGrath! Leifer! U.S.S. Newton! U.S.S. Wolcott! McCoy! Uhura! The U.S.S. Farragut! Archer! TheU.S.S. Enterprise! Welcome to Starfleet and Godspeed!

"Did they just say Archer?" Lacey said straightening up, "Wait, did they just say Archer? Me Archer? What?"

"They didn't say my name," Jim muttered storming off the barrack leader. Lacey watched Leonard follow him before heading in the opposite direction to the other barrack leader.

"You called Archer, may I have the first name?" Lacey asked looking intently at the leader.

"Archer, Lacey," the barrack leader said, "To the U.S.S. Enterprise." "Okay," Lacey said cheerfully, "Thank you."

She smiled until the barrack leader turned her back before the plastered on grin dropped and she started to hyperventilate lightly. Oh my god, Oh my god, Oh my god, she thought, how is this even happening. Why?

"Wait hold on," Lacey called to the leader, "I still have one year, I'm not even in my graduating class yet. How am I assigned to a ship?"

The barrack leader glared at her slightly before tapping around her PADD, "It says you were recommended by Admiral Bishop to be assigned in emergency situations. You are at the top of your class, so congratulations and godspeed."

"Great," Lacey breathed, widening her eyes slightly, "Great, thanks again."

The leader nodded. Lacey turned around looking for Jim and Leo. She spotted them, Leonard talking to him seriously.

She caught up to them and heard Leonard say, "The Board'll rule in your favor. Most likely."

"It's okay, at least Lacey will be here with me," Jim said with a shrug.

"Sorry Jim," Lacey said with a frown, the two looked over at her, "I'm assigned. Some kind of advanced placement."

Jim looked crushed but he hid it quickly. But Lacey saw the longing as he looked at the fleets of shuttles. "Listen, Jim, we have to go," Leo said reluctantly.

Lacey looked at Leonard shocked. Why wasn't Jim coming? She looked at the crestfallen face of her friend. She didn't want to ask or bring it up again. Lacey didn't say anything, just went up to him and hugged him hard.

"Don't die up there," Jim whispered.

"I'll try my best," Lacey whispered with a weak chuckle. Leonard and Lacey started shifting through the crowds of newly minted cadets racing to their assigned shuttles.

"What happened?" Lacey asked, "Why can't Jim come?"

"Academic suspension," Leonard answered shortly.

"For the Kobayashi Maru test?" Lacey asked. Leonard nodded. "That's insane, can they really just do that? Jim is still the best in his class, he made one mistake on some dumb test."

Leonard reached the hanger entrance before stopping. He straightened up quickly before turning back around, nearly knocking Lacey over. He quickly returned to Jim.

"What are you doing?" Lacey asked.

Leonard grabbed Jim, "Come with me." "What are you doing?" Jim asked looked shocked.

"Wait, no seriously Leo, what are you doing?" Lacey asked.

When the doctor didn't answer her, instead kept pulling Jim with him as they went back to the hanger entrance. Lacey sighed then went back to her accustomed position as follower of the two men. The three enter quickly, and Leonard prepped a med in a hypospray syringe. Was that a vaccine? For mud fleas?

"What are you doing?" Jim asked staring at the syringe.

"Doing you a favor. I couldn't just leave you there, looking all pitiful-roll up your sleeve, I'm gonna give you a vaccine against viral infection from Melvaran mud fleas," Leonard said as he fired the hypospray.

Lacey 'ohed' in understanding. But JIm still hadn't caught on.

"Ow," Jim shouted when the needle pierced though his skin, "I don't understand."

"It's to give you the symptoms," Lacey said nodding as she followed Leonard to put away the med gear.

"You're gonna start losing vision in your left eye," Leonard said. Lacey turned around and watched Jim blink multiple times, "Yeah, I already have."

She watched him as he tried to stand up, "Don't stand up yet."

"What'd you do to me?" Jim asked breathing heavily.

"You're gonna get a really bad headache. And flopsweat," Leonard said. Lacey grimaced.

"This is a favor?" Jim asked.

"Yeah and you're welcome," Leonard said. Lacey let herself smile.

"Aw Leo, that's so sweat," Lacey gushed as Leonard started to lift Jim out of his seat.

"Yeah, I'm a sap, let's go," Leonard said as they pulled Jim out of the room moving quickly to the shuttle where a scanning officer stopped them in their tracks.

"Kirk, James T. he's not cleared for duty aboard the Enterprise," he said.

"But I am, and Medical Code states the treatment and transport of a patient's to be determined at the discretion of his attending physician, which is can see he's suffering, he needs me as his doctor, so since I'm assigned to this ship, so's he, or would you like to explain to Captain Pike why the Enterprise warped into a crisis without one of its medical officers?" Leonard said all with a fierce glare which would have frightened anyone.

But Lacey knew the situation they were in so all she wanted to do was laugh.

"As you were," the scanner said, scanning Lacey. "As you were," Leonard quipped before pulling Jim past the speechless officer.

Lacey gave him a somewhat apologetic look for the grumpy doctor before following quickly.

Lacey was sitting with one of her fellow cadets away from Leonard and Jim, the latter looking extremely queasy. Lacey looked out at the amazing view and her breath hitched, this was it. She was going to space. She silently made a promise to her dead father to make him at least somewhat proud.

Lacey waved the at the two men when they landed, surrounding all the impressive looking star ships before walking to the changing area to change into the white uniform for nurses. She stripped quickly before heading to the medical bay. She followed the rest of the staffs motions to prep the area when Leonard and Jim entered. She watched Jim moan. She had to admit, his agony was slightly amusing. Leonard plopped her onto a bed and prepared another hypospray.

"This wasn't worth it," Jim moaned, "I wish I didn't know you."

"Here's a short lasting sedative-those symptoms won't last long," Leonard grumbled, "Don't be an infant."

With that he shot Jim with another hypospray. Jim closed his eyes and flopped onto the bed almost comically. Lacey smirked slightly which dropped when Leonard looked at her, "Watch him and monitor his vitals."

"Yes sir," Lacey said.

It was strange calling Leonard sir. He was just Leo to her. Leonard smirked at her upon hearing her words. Lacey had her head bent fixing her station and she looked up catching Leo's smirk.

"Oh, shut up, Leonard," Lacey sneered shooting him a teasingly loathing glare.


	10. Chapter 10

**Author's Note:**

**Next chapter! Excitement! Happy New Year be prepared to screw up every single date you write buy writing 2012 instead!**

**Enjoy and thanks for commenting, favoriting and following!**

* * *

10.

Lacey puttered about the Medical Bay keeping Jim's unconscious form in the corner of her eye. The nurses and crew of the Medical Bay were taking out towels, pushing carts of medical needs and prepping vaccines in their respective hyposprays.

Leonard was rushing around prepping beds and overseeing everything. Lacey smirked, her Leonard was growing up. Obviously that was her teasing him. She placed her prep work on one of the tables and went to go check on Jim. She felt his forehead, checking his them, then feeling his pulse which was steady and normal.

Leonard passed her and scoffed playfully, "He thought he was leaking earlier."

Lacey stifled a giggle, "Did he really? Leaking?"

Leonard just rolled her eyes and Lacey headed back to her station following the flow of her fellow meds and nurses in their white uniforms. She tugged on it, already hating the damn thing. Again with the damn skirts. She looked at one of the male nurses who had the same color uniform but in white.

God damn it. All the men had freaking pants but she was stuck in a dress. What was this? How come they all got pants? How did they expect them to fight in a skirt?

Lacey just sighed programming her computers before hearing the ding of a ship wide broadcast. A voice, thick with a Russian accent started speaking. She smiled, he sounded young.

"May I have your attention please. At twenty two hundred hours, we detected an anomaly in the Neutral Zone. What appeared to be a lightning storm in space. Soon after Starfleet received a distress signal from the Vulcan high command that the planet was experiencing size-mick activity. Our activity is to assess the condition of Vulcan and assist in an evacuation if necessary," the Russian said.

Lacey got a look at his face on one of the PADDs the transmission was coming from. He WAS young. Had to be at least seventeen. This just gave her more anxiety. Not that he was young he couldn't navigate the ship, but that he was young and this was a possibly dangerous mission. Oh god.

"Should be arriving at Vulcan in three minutes," he continued, "thank you for your time."

As soon as the Russian signed off, Jim sat bolt upright in his bed breathing out, "Lightning storm."

He started breathing heavily and Lenard and Lacey walked up to him. Well Lacey walked, Leo kind of sauntered over with his arms crossed.

"Ah, Jim, you're awake," Leonard drawled in his Southern manner, "How're you feeling." He paused his eyes looking down, "Good god man."

Lacey followed his line of vision seeing Jim's swollen hands, her eyes widening, "Oh my god."

Jim was currently freaking out in his bed staring at his large hands in shock making weird squealing noises, "What the hell is this?"

"A reaction to the vaccine, damn it," Leonard cursed rushing past his bed Lacey following close behind, "Nurse Archer I need 50ccs of Cortisone."

"Yes, sir," Lacey said running to her station and prepping the Cortisone in the hypospray.

She looked over her shoulder at Leonard scanning Jim's face while Jim looked at the PADD. She quickly handed Leonard the hypospray when Jim grabbed Leonard with his sausage hands and stared at him intently.

"We gotta stop the ship," Jim said breathily before pulling away.

"Jim stop," Leonard said. Lacey rushed up to him holding out a med kit and pushing him to follow Jim.

"Stay in the Med Bay, keep me posted," Leonard said rushing out.

Lacey shouted, "Yes sir." She watched him sprint out of the Medical Bay before turning her attention to the PADD Jim was looking at. The Russian kid was still saying his message she heard lightning storm before the word soaked in completely the second time.

Oh my god, Lacey thought, her eyes widening, Jim had to stop the ship. It was a trap. Oh god, she was going to puke.

...

Lacey was frantically pacing back and forth from her station to the one next to her, helping her fellows with their programming and laying the sheets down on the bed. Her mind was working ten miles a minute. Jim had to stop the freaking ship. Her eyes kept glancing towards the PADD hoping for another ship wide commune.

She was tugging her braid, something she did under sever anxiety. What was going on outside the Med Bay? Damn it. Suddenly a beeping noise could be heard through the ship. Red Alert, Jim told the Captain. Lacey took a deep breath, this was about to happen.

Only seconds later the ship began to move. She quickly put her hands down over her supplies to keep them from sliding everywhere and to keep balance as the ship rocked. What was going on? Are they in Vulcan, was it really under attack?

She was jolted to the side before regaining her sea legs, her body still wobbling around with the motion of the ship. This was exactly why she couldn't be captain. She really wanted to puke right now, how they remained calm was beyond her. Extremely admirable.

"Prepare, your stations," Lacey ordered to the rest of the med staff, "The ship is experiencing something, prepare yourself for any injuries or accidents that might have or will occur."

The rest of the staff nodded. Okay, Lacey thought tapping her computer rapidly, remain calm, you can do this.

Suddenly an explosion hit launching the staff to the ground. The Medical Bay felt it from the left as the room filled with dust, dirt, fire and pieces of the ship. The explosion didn't directly hit the Med Bay, the brunt of it probably hit deck 6 Lacey estimated, her brain working quickly they had been hit by the end of the explosion. Oh shit, that was where Dr. Puri was, their Chief Medical Examiner.

The lights had gone out but the PADDs, the ones left were still working.

"Quick go check for wounded, someone looked for Dr. Puri on deck 6," Lacey ordered and the med staff began rushing out of the Med Bay, she looked to the remaining, "Prepare your stations. Get ready for the wounded."

Soon enough the staff was bringing in the wounded on stretchers, placing them on beds to be scanned right after they were placed on the bed. Lacey rushed to her station where an engineer laid with a bloody arm. She scanned him quickly.

"It's broken," Lacey announced, the man groaned. She began preparing a mild sedative, "I'm going to numb the pain just to set your bone back." She injected him.

"Someone try to find out what the hell is going on," Lacey shouted over the noise of moaning and rushing footsteps as the wounded were being carried in.

"I can't connect with the bridge," a nurse shouted back, "They are receiving a commune from an outside ship."

"What is going on?" Lacey muttered.

"We're being attacked," the man in red stated breathing heavily.

Lacey bit her lip, "I'm gonna set the bone back in place." It snapped back and the man winced heavily, "Sorry, the sedative should be wearing off soon."

"Nurse Archer," Lacey lifted her head, "Dr. Puri is dead." Her eyes caught Dr. Puri's lifeless form.

"Shit," Lacey muttered, "Keep working with the wounded, we'll wait for Dr. McCoy to come." She started bandaging the man's arm after giving him a pain killer medicine to fix his broken bone.

"Just a nurse, eh?" the man said looking up at her, "Thought you were Dr. Puri."

Lacey froze then smiled slightly as she finished bandaging him, "Can you stand?"

"Yeah, just my arm," the man said standing up. Another wounded engineer was soon replaced.

"Don't leave the Bay yet," Lacey said, "Wait another five minutes for the pain killer to start and the medicine to start mending your bones."

Just then Leonard ran in, he surveyed the chaos, the noise and the blood with a stricken face.

"Dr. McCoy," Lacey called while scanning her latest patient, "Dr. Puri is dead. I have some of the staff going for the wounded and the rest treating the ones already here."

"Good job, Nurse Archer," Leonard said going to his own station.

"Oh, yeah Dr. McCoy," Lacey shouted, "What the hell is going on?"

"Romulans are attacking Vulcan, it's not a lightning storm," Leonard said scanning his own patient, "Captain Pike's going to negotiate."

"Negotiate, my ass," Lacey shouted, furrowing her brows, "He'll die, they'll kill him."

"They're sending three officers down to disable their drill to try and save Vulcan," Leonard said, "Jim, some Asian pilot and an engineer."

"Jim?" Lacey asked confused, "Jim's not an officer."

"Looks like we're all getting promotions today," Leonard said with a grimace.

"Dr. Puri report," a voice was heard. Leonard jumped over a flaming lamp.

"It's McCoy," he said, his voice grave, "Dr. Puri was on deck six. He's dead."

"Then you have just inherited responsibility as chief medical officer," the voice, Spock, Lacey discovered.

"Yeah, tell me something I don't know," Leonard quipped before rushing back, "Lace, you're my second."

"But," Lacey protested, "What about Dr. Folney?"

"Dr. Folney didn't give orders while both the other doctors were gone," Leonard said, "You're second, that's an order."

"Yes sir," Lacey breathed hoping to god nothing would happen to Leonard. Because he was her friend and she would panic if she had to become CMO.

* * *

**Hey if you have a tumblr follow me!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Author's Note:**

**Long time no chapter update...sorry *sheepish face***

**Oh and thanks Saissa for having my back and correcting my sloppy typing! :)**

**Here it is, next chapter!**

* * *

11.

**_(WARNING...I might have stretched some things about Vulcan in this chapter...and took some...artistic liberties with Sarek's and Spock's complicated Vulcan emotions and relationship...they're not too drastic, I've even read some fics that kinda do the same thing, so if that bugs anyone. Sorry.*another sheepish face*)_**

They had managed to treat the majority of the wounded so the Medical Bay was clearing up. Someone had put out the fiery lamp and Leonard went from treating in order to provide more hands to overseeing the treatments of others.

He stopped by Lacey who was tapping on her computer trying to replenish her supply of sedative, "I hate the Medical Bay."

Her back was turned so Leonard couldn't see her face, "Why?"

"Because I don't know what was going on then the Med Bay went boom," Lacey said turning around with a slight smile, "Not good for the anxiety. I like being able to help though, just wish there was some more communication."

Leonard nodded, "We just need to treat the wounded. You didn't know because Dr. Puri was on deck 6. Hopefully now we'll be able to know what's going on."

Lacey nodded going to help Nurse Chapel with her patient.

They heard a commotion outside and Lacey could detect the same Russian voice from earlier shouting, "I can do zat, I can do zat."

"What's going on?" Leonard asked.

"Welcome to my world," Lacey said.

"Just wait, we'll be notified of what is going on," Leonard said, "Be patient."

...

She didn't want to know what was going on now. The Vulcan planet had a black hole placed in the middle which destroyed the entire planet. Some Vulcans, the high command most likely were saved but they had lost the life of Spock's mother.

She finished treating a member of the crew before ushering one of the elder Vulcans to her station to treat. Leonard had informed him that this was Sarek, Spock's father. He looked so closed in himself. Not distant just vacant. She recognized that look. It was the look her mother wore when she was younger and her father had died on the U.S.S. Radon.

Lacey bit her lip before taking out her scanner-her extremely over used scanner if she said so herself, "Hello sir, I'm Nurse Archer."

Sarek looked up at her and nodded, "Greetings."

She started to scan him but could feel the pulsing of her anxiety. She knew a lot about Vulcans thanks to Nyota and the fact she took a history about Vulcan her first and second year at Starfleet-mainly for fun, mainly because Nyota made her. And she knew that Vulcans mated for life and bonds broken were an awful thing to bear. She was worried for the older Vulcan male she never met.

Unlike Vulcans, humans obviously didn't mate for life. But with her mother and father...they grew up together. They've known each other since they were five years old, went to the same school, lived next to each other and signed up for Starfleet together. They had been in a monogamous relationship with each other since they were thirteen. In human standards, they were practically bonded.

Lacey knew how much her mother missed her father after he died. She didn't leave her bed for a year- it was so bad her grandmother had to come and take care of an also mourning but too young to understand Lacey. And when her mother did emerge from her tissue and tear nest, she was never the same. She didn't look at Lacey the same way, didn't read to her like she used to, or make chocolate chip pancakes on Sundays.

Now her mother was always off planet honeymooning with whatever husband she was married to at the time. But Lacey knew she wasn't happy. Each marriage lasted mere months-the longest being eight. And her mother always had that vacant look, always looking off in the distance and sometimes crying at night.

The only time her mother talked with her was to tell her to study or stand up straight. So Lacey enlisted in Starfleet because she mourned her dad too when she came to the right age, but her mother continued up until this day. When Lacey left, her mother contacted her once a year and Lacey hated it. She wished that her mother hadn't strayed from her, she knew she was hurting but she had to know that Lacey hurt too. They could have helped each other.

Lacey took a deep breath. She was about to ask a Vulcan for a favor.

She finished the scan on the elder Vulcan, checking it over to see if he needed anything. Her eyes flickered up to him.

"I'm sorry for your loss," Lacey said. The Vulcan looked confused before she closed her eyes, dumb ass, "I mean, I grieve with thee."

The elder Vulcan looked shocked, or at least she thought he looked shocked.

"Took a class about Vulcan at Starfleet," Lacey said with a soft smile, "I...my father died back when I was ten."

"I grieve with thee as well," the Vulcan said evenly.

"Thank you," Lacey said, "I was young, it didn't hit me as hard. It hit my mother very badly." The Vulcan just stared at her, probably wondering what this babbling human wanted from him. "They were together for a very long time since they were very young and when he died, my mother...it was almost like she was functioning on autopilot."

"I do not understand," the Vulcan said.

"She mourned for a long time, staying to herself in her room for a year," Lacey told him looking at him in the eye, "She stopped caring for me, my grandmother had to come to make sure I was still alive since I wasn't able to take care of myself entirely at ten, I was still young."

The Vulcan was silent. He took a glance over her shoulder to the other part of the Med Bay where she knew Spock was getting scanned.

"What I'm trying to say is," Lacey said taking a deep breath, "Don't distance yourself from him. You've lost your mate and that is definitely causing incomparable pain, pain I understand you are not allowed to show. But Spock lost a mother, he understands your pain because he is going through it as well. Don't do what my mother did. Don't push away the one person who understands."

The Vulcan looked back at her and blinked. He looked as if he was collecting himself, "Do you still speak with your mother?"

Lacey gave him a rueful smile, that was probably more of a grimace, "No. We talk once a month since I enlisted. But she missed her yearly communication with me this year."

The Vulcan nodded, "I appreciate your concern, Nurse Archer, it is logical for a practicer of medicine to not only be in tune with the body, but also the mind."

Lacey smiled at him acknowledging his Vulcan form of thanks, "You may go, your vitals are stable."

"Live long and prosper, Nurse Archer," Sarek said standing up and giving her the Vulcan salute. She quickly returned it, forgetting its proper name, "Live long and prosper."

Lacey watched as he left her station with his hands clasped behind his back. She noticed he turned his head, presumably to look at Spock before continuing on. Lacey let out a breath, exhaling the tension from her body. That was weird. But it felt good to help-the reason she loved being a nurse. She didn't want to lead, she wanted to help.

...

Lacey was now sitting in front of Jim wrapping his wrist around in a bandage. She took a glance to her left at Spock who was starring at a wall with a glazed and glassy look in his eyes. He looked slightly sad. If she didn't know that his mother was a human, she would have had to check her vision. But he wasn't full fledged Vulcan so he was entitled to some emotions.

Vulcans were already an extremely emotional race. Well. They suppressed their emotions and took the path of a logically controlled mindset, which led all other species to believe they were EMOTIONLESS. But she had to wonder...why did an entire race change to a logically driven one? What purpose was there in that? She had heard that the ancient race of Vulcans was extremely volatile with their emotions-completely led by passion, rage, envy, ect. So why would an entire race of people completely change their mindsets? Unless they had TOO MUCH emotion.

She could see in the eyes of that older Vulcan, Sarek had loved his wife Amanda, no matter what he believed. Love. An apparently unnecessary emotion on Vulcan to determine one's mate for life. And he loved a HUMAN. Vulcans were naturally secretive. The only reason she knew this much information was because her father had a friend from Vulcan who visited her when her mother was in her deep depressive states of mourning. He would tell her all about Vulcan which she loved as a child.

Now she could see that he really cared for her too. Beyond the fact she was his friend's daughter. He told her some things about Vulcan that the average person wouldn't know.

"Okay Jim," Lacey whispered, "I'm done with your wrist." Her voice sounded strangled at wrist.

"What's wrong Lace?" Jim asked taking her hands in his.

"Jim," Lacey started taking a deep breath, "THat engineer...Olsen was it? He died Jim. He died. That could have been you."

"No it couldn't," Jim contradicted with a sake of his head, "I pulled my parachute at the appropriate time."

"Jim, you were lucky to have only hurt your wrist," Lacey said her eyes welling with tears, "What happens when you hurt your leg, then your arm then you head which causes you to go brain dead then die."

Jim just stared at her, "Lacey, I'm careful."

"You jumped off the drill to save Sulu, it was brave, extremely so but you didn't know if the Enterprise could have beamed you up," Lacey protested.

Jim gave her a small smile, taking her chin in her hand, "You once said that I was a natural born leader, right?"

Lacey nodded, her chin brushing against the slight callus of his palm.

"Leaders become captains, right?" Jim said with a raised eyebrow.

Lacey nodded again pitifully.

"And captains do whatever they can to protect their crew regardless of death or mental repercussions, right?" Jim asked, "An extremely smart friend of mine told me this."

Lacey sniffed and giggled as a tear fell, "I'll overlook the fact that your using my words against me since you called me smart." She never cried, why the hell was she crying?

Jim smiled at her, wiping the tear with his thumb, "I'm impossible to get mad at."

"I hate you," Lacey said with a smirk.

"No you don't," Jim whispered giving her a kiss on the forehead.

"Just promise you'll always have some kind of plan to get out of situations, no matter how stupid or strange," Lacey pleaded.

"I'll try," Jim said with an eye roll.

Spock stood up and began to leave the Medical Bay after receiving a nod from Leonard signaling his dismissal. He was probably going to report everything in his captain's log.

"He's taking it rough," Lacey observed.

"He'll be fine," Jim shrugged, "You know Vulcans, they don't have emotions and if they do they compartmentalize extremely well."

But she could tell Spock was hurting. Lacey's eyes flickered to Sarek who was standing to the right of her, facing his son's back, unseen by Spock. She hoped that he took her advice-even if he thought them illogical.

Love was a strange thing. Made people do strange things.

Her eyes flickered to Jim as she wiped away the first tear she shed in years.


	12. Chapter 12

**Author's Note:**

**Holy new post batman! Sorry I haven't uploaded in a looooong time. I'd give an excuse but I don't have one, sorry again.**

**Slightly longer than normal to appease you all!**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

12.

The Bridge was bright, extremely so compared to the state of the Sick Bay. All of Vulcan elders remained in the Sick Bay for logics sake they claimed. But Lacey knew they were shaken up from the events that had previously unfolded. She wanted to tell them that it was alright, it was normal to feel emotionally unbalanced after the freaking complete destruction of a planet, especially a home planet they had grown up in, but she knew that would be disrespectful.

Leonard told her that he wanted her to come with him up to the Bridge. At first she was confused because her post was the Sick Bay. The wounded were moved into a different wing of the Medical Bay, being attended to by some of the staff, the now less chaotic Bay was being cleaned by another good portion of the med staff while the rest were standing around awkwardly watching the Vulcans. Leonard was allowed to frequent the Bridge due to his commanding officer status, but she was still just a Nurse, practically a cadet when it came to rank.

But Leonard said he needed her and she wasn't about to refuse orders. They had lost a few colleagues down here in the Med Bay but there was still a substantial amount to tend after the remaining wounded and the Vulcan elders alike.

So here she was, awkwardly standing in the Bridge next to Leonard watching Jim sit in the Captain's chair with his head planted on his fist. Nyota typing away at her post and Spock placing slightly. She had learned that the Russian kid's name was Ensign Chekov and by his youthful looks, most likely a genius of the child prodigy likes and the Helmsman that was with Jim to go disable the drill was Lieutenant Sulu.

Lacey bit her lip once Spock started talking. It was the same tone his father had used, dispatched, cold but had the same underlying pain in its tone...pain after losing a loved one. She knew that tone, heard it used too many times in her life.

"Lieutenant, have you confirmed that Nero is headed for Earth?" Spock questioned.

Nyota turned from her station after scanning for enemy signals most likely, "Their trajectory suggests no other destination, Captain."

"Thank you," Spock said, he paused slightly, almost unnoticeably before adding a, "Lieutenant."

Nyota nodded, looking down slightly before staring up again, a mask of calm that Lacey saw right through. Don't worry, Lacey tried to telepathically comfort her, he's got the stress of captainship on his shoulders coupled with the fact his planet just collapsed in on itself and his mother died, just let him be Spock.

"Earth may be his next stop, but we have to assume every Federation planet's a target," Jim said looking at the floor with intense concentration.

"Out of the chair," Spock drawled like an irate mother almost and Lacey had repress a slight snicker. She then straightened her back, upset with herself. This was a serious situation. She needed to go back to the Medical Bay. She was just standing there, she didn't have anything to contribute. All the stress was seeping into her pores. Yup, she definitely made the right decision to not be a captain.

"If ze federation is ze target," Chekov started, "Zen why did zey not attack us?"

"Why would they?" Sulu questioned before answering his question, "Why waste a weapon, we obviously weren't a threat."

Spock acknowledged these statements with his hand, "That's not it. He said he wanted me to see something. The destruction of my home planet."

Leonard spoke up next to her with his usual amount of sass, exasperation and irritation, "And how the hell did they do that by the way? When did they jump so far ahead in the arms race?"

"The engineering comprehension necessary to artificially create a black hole may suggest the answer: such technology could theoretically be manipulated to create a tunnel through space time," Spock said, his eyes flittering as if he had a grand revelation.

Lacey blinked in confusion trying to understand what he just said. Did he just?

Apparently Leonard's patience was wearing thin and he wasn't comprehending the former science officer's revelation either, "Damnit, man, I'm a doctor, not a physicist."

"Are you suggesting they're from the future?" Lacey asked, incredulously, speaking for the first time since she arrived on the Bridge. They couldn't be from the future, that, that didn't make any sense. Then again she never understood Quantum Mechanics and the Theory of Space Time Relativity or whatever else she had to learn in advanced physics.

"If you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains-however improbable-must be the truth," Spock answered.

Did he just quote Sherlock Holmes? Lacey wondered thinking back to one of the numerous paperback books-The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes- her some odd greats grandmother kept through the family.

"How poetic," Leonard said in an almost sneer. Well, Lacey thought, not POETIC exactly. But she digressed going back to her original scolding herself for not focusing on the task at hand.

"Then why would an angry future Romulan want with Captain Pike?" Jim asked, now standing.

"As captain, he knows details of Starfleet's defenses," Sulu brought up a valid point.

"What we need to do is catch up to that ship. Disable it, take it over and get Pike back," Jim stated.

Everyone at this point was looking at Jim like he had lost all his marbles.

"Jim," Lacey stated softly but he sent her a searing look which reminded her of their previous conversation so she took a deep breath, nodded and vowed to herself to remain silent.

"We're technologically outmatched in every way," Spock rebottled, "A rescue attempt would be illogical."

"Nero's ship would haft to drop out of warp for us to overtake zem," Chekov provided as well for Spock's case.

"What about assigning Engineering crews to try and boost our warp yield?" Jim tried asking Chekov rather than Spock.

"Remaining power and crew are being used to repair radiation leaks in the lower decks and damage to the main deflector shield without which we cannot communicate with Starfleet-"

"-Okay, okay, okay," Jim said cutting him off slightly at the end of his statement, "There's got to be some way!"

"We must gather with the rest of Starfleet to balance the terms of our next engagement," Spock refuted.

"There won't be a next engagement," Jim said following Spock to talk to him face to face, "By the time we've gathered, it'll be too late. You say he's from the future? Knows what's going to happen? Then the logical thing is to be unpredictable."

"You're assuming Nero knows how events are predicted to unfold. The contrary," Spock said stepping closer to Jim, "Nero's very presence has altered the flow of history, beginning with the attack on the U.S.S. Kelvin, culminating in the events of today-thereby creating a new chain of incidents that cannot be anticipated by either party."

"An alternate reality," Nyota stated walking from her position, Lacey's thoughts echoed Nyota's statement.

Her eyebrows furrowed together in concentration, does that mean there was a different her in a different universe? A different Jim? A different Leonard? A different Spock? Was her father alive? Was Jim's father alive? Of course they were still alive seeing as though Nero was the one to attack the U.S.S. Kelvin. But...that would mean Jim and her never met or Jim and Bones never met. Was Jim captain? Did he enter into Starfleet? Did SHE enter into Starfleet? The only reason she applied was to escape her negligent mother, but her mother wouldn't be negligent in this alternate reality so she wouldn't need to escape. Was she a nurse, a doctor or...even a captain?

Did any of this Nero business prevent her from a better life?

My god, Lacey thought as Spock said, "Precisely", to Nyota, I hate Physics and science. Why the hell is everything so complicated?

"Whatever lives we might have lived, if the time continuum was disrupted...our destinies have changed," Spock continued walking towards the front of the Bridge.

Yeah, figured that already Lacey said, feeling the familiar signs of anxiety. Well, great now she'd never be able to live her life contently. She'd always wonder if it could have been better.

"Mr. Sulu, plot a course for the Laurentian system, Warp Factor Three," Spock stated.

"Wait," Jim started walking towards the captain chair, "Spock, don't do this, running back to the rest of the fleet for a confab is a massive waste of time,"

"These weren't he orders Captain Pike issued when he left ship," Spock stated plainly.

"He also ordered us to go back and get him! Spock, you're Captain now,"

"I am aware of my responsibilities, Mr. Kirk!"

"Every second we waste, Nero's getting closer to his next target!"

"That is correct and why I'm instructing you to accept that I alone am in command,"

"I will not allow us to go backwards, away from the problem, instead of hunting Nero down!"

"Then I must remove you from this ship. If I confine you to the brig, you'll likely escape. Mr. Chekov: have transportation prepare a deployment capsule. Security, escort him out."

Two men in red shirts came and grabbed onto Jim as he struggled.

"Jim," Lacey breathed, "Sir, you can't do this, can he do this?" Lacey asked Leonard.

Leonard just looked shocked, like the rest of the members on the bridge, all staring at Spock like he had gone mad.

Jim suddenly stomped on one of the men's foot before hitting the other in a violent attempt for freedom. One tried to get his phaser out but Spock calmly walked up to Jim's struggling form and pinched the area where his neck met his shoulder affectively causing Jim to go unconscious.

"Get him off this ship," Spock said coldly, with underlying threat.

"Are you insane?" Leonard questioned incredulously rushing to Jim before the men in red dragged him out of the bridge.

"Would you like to join him, Doctor McCoy?" Spock questioned.

Leonard grimaced before shaking his head and looking at Lacey. Lacey just stood there in shock staring at the Vulcan. She didn't know if what he did was right or he was acting upon the repressed anger he had due to his mother's death.

What she did know was that he was sending Jim off the ship into the great abyss of space to who knows were. What the hell is he playing at?

...

Jim inhaled sharply, pulling away from the mind meld with...Spock, a friendlier Spock from another, alternate universe. He stares at him, his mind spinning because now he believes the Vulcan when he says he is Spock. He felt remark

"Forgive me...emotional transference is an effect of the mind meld," Spock Prime apologized.

Jim suddenly felt embarrassed by his past behavior to Spock and his dismissive attitude towards the lost of his mother, "So you do feel."

"Yes," he answered simply.

"Going back in time you changed all our lives," Jim stated.

His mind buzzed, he probably met his father in this alternate universe, he might have not met Bones in the same fashion as he did in his own universe, he might have signed up for Starfleet voluntarily, Lacey's father wouldn't have died on the U.S.S. Radon because he would not have needed to be transferred after the Kelvin was attacked, she might not have signed up for Starfleet at all-seeing as her desire to escape her mother was her reason for enlisting at all-and everyone else's lives must have been slightly altered. History was altered. His life was altered.

"Jim," Spock Prime said, "We must go, there is a Starfleet out post not far from here."

"Wait in the universe you came from," Jim said turning around, pausing, "Did I know my father?"

"Yes," Spock Prime said with a touch of sympathy, "You often spoke of him as your inspiration for joining Starfleet, him and Dr. Archer."

"Dr. Archer?" Jim asked bewildered.

"Yes, Captain Lacey Archer's father," Spock Prime answered easily.

"Captain?" Jim asked again, feeling slightly overwhelmed. Lacey was a captain in his universe. His Lacey? Lacey-anxiety prone, fragile little Lacey. Now he felt sick, maybe he sent her in the wrong path, maybe he should have kept pushing her towards captaincy. Also, he was kind of shocked. Lacey was HIS. But that was beyond the point.

"Lacey Archer," Spock Prime repeated, "You and she were the closest of friends, due to both of your father's closeness-they were friends as well. The two of you enlisted in Starfleet together, graduated together then went on to captain two different ships."

Jim just stared at him.

"Do you not know Lacey Archer?" Spock Prime asked looking slightly shocked.

"I do," Jim replied hastily, "I met her two years ago, though."

"Ah," Spock Prime said nodding to himself.

"Didn't know we'd still be extremely close in another universe," Jim said looking off trying to imagine that life, the one Spock Prime lived in. A world where he knew his father.

Spock Prime nodded looking as though he wanted to say something more but Jim wasn't paying attention to him. He let the left side of his mouth twitch up slightly, he'll figure it out soon enough.

"You should know," Spock Prime started, "He proudly lived to see become captain of the Enterprise."

"Captain," Jim breathed.

"Yes, a ship we must return you to as soon as possible."

...

Leonard swore loudly causing Lacey to look up from the fifth bio bed she sanitized after one of the other nurses said she forgot to clean one and couldn't remember which one it was.

"That green blooded fool wants to see me," Leonard snarled.

"Then go see him," Lacey said with a hard tone, she was pissed that he had threw Jim overboard but somewhere in her mind she was secretly afraid of the slightly emotionally imbalanced Vulcan, "He still is captain no matter how angry we are at him."

"I'm not angry, I'm livid," Leonard stated plainly, his normal annoyance seemingly heightened, "But you're coming with me. I need supervision, just in case I decide to rip his pointed ears from his cranium."

Lacey let out a dry chuckle but knew Leonard just wanted her with him because he was worried about what Spock might do. After what happened with Jim, their captain was worryingly unpredictable.

The walked to the turbolift, waited then walked out once it opened. Leonard moved towards Spock while Lacey trailed behind him slightly. She hadn't realized before due to heightened stress and anxiety on her part, that she looked so out of place amongst the color coded members of the Bridge. With her white nurse dress she stuck out like a white, sore thumb.

"You wanted to see me?" Leonard said in a horribly false nice-as nice as Leonard McCoy could get-tone.

"Yes, Doctor," Spock said in a discreet voice, "I'm aware that James Kirk is a friend of yours. Supporting me, as you did must have been difficult."

Lacey bit her lip to control any angry outburst she wasn't allowed to spew towards the man of higher rank.

"Are you thanking me?" Leonard asked.

"I'm simply acknowledging your difficulties," Spock stated, "Yours as well Nurse Archer."

Lacey stiffened when Spock addressed her.

"Permission to speak freely, Sir," Leonard asked.

"I welcome it," Spock answered. Lacey closed her eyes, here we go.

"Do you, now," Leonard mocked the Vulcan, "Okay then: are you out of your Vulcan mind? Were you doing the logical thing? Maybe. The right one? Debatable. But one thing's for damn sure-that kid doesn't know how to lose. Just isn't in his DNA. Back home we have a saying: "If you're gonna ride in the Kentucky Derby, don't leave your prize stallion in the stable."

"A curious metaphor, Doctor. As a stallion must first be broken before it can reach its potential," Spock said easily. Lacey had the sudden urge to slap that somewhat smug tone out of his voice. Her eyes widened, well, that was not like here at all.

"My God, man," Leonard said with exasperation and intense annoyance-all pretense was gone at this point, "You could at least act like it was a hard decision."

"I intended to assist in the effort to re-establish communication with Starfleet. However if crew morale would be better by my roaming the halls weeping, I'll gladly defer to your medical expertise."

The sound of the turbolift made Lacey draw her eyes away from the tension brewing between the two men. It was Sarek.

"If you'll excuse me," Spock said walking past Leonard and Lacey.

Sarek caught Lacey's eye and nodded slightly, she returned it as the two reentered the turbolift.

"That green blooded hobgoblin," Leonard seethed as he started walking back to the Med Bay, "How dare he just prance around like throwing Jim off the ship was an easy thing?"

"Maybe it was for him," Lacey said, playing Devil's Advocate, "I mean they didn't like each other to begin with."

"I don't like him either, but that doesn't mean if I was captain I would hurl him off into deep space."

"Well, it's not like he's just floating there," Lacey argued as they reached the Bay, "He's probably landed on another planet by now."

"Yeah?" Leonard said scathingly, "And what if that planet is inhabited by vicious man-eating beasts and he's dead now."

"Jim wouldn't be stupid enough to leave his pod in a danger planet," Lacey protested.

"Jesus woman it's like you don't even know Jim," Leonard shouted, throwing his hands up in the air, "You obviously don't care about the fact he isn't on the ship. Probably agree with Spock, now don't yo..."

Leonard didn't finish because Lacey caught him off with a sharp slap, "How dare you? How dare you believe that I don't care about Jim?"

Lacey breathed in a ragged breath, stepping close to Leonard, getting in his face, "I know Jim. And Jim would want me to trust him, not sit around here moping publically like he died. You said yourself, it's not in Jim's DNA to lose, he's probably finding a way back on the ship right now."

"You don't know that," Leonard said rubbing his face.

"He promised me," Lacey screamed, her chin trembled as her eyes filled with tears, crying twice in same forty eight hour span, what the hell was wrong with her, "he promised me," she said in a much quieter voice as the tears spilled over, "That he would always find a way to avoid death, to come back. He has to come back to me Leonard, I can't just challenge everything and everyone who opposes this, I have to trust Jim."

Leonard put an arm around her awkwardly, nervous that he made her cry, "I understand Lace, I get it. I'm just angry at Spock for being an idiot, angry at Jim for being an idiot, angry at the two of you for being idiots."

Lacey sniffed wiping her tears away hastily, "Jim and I? Why are we idiots?"

"Both of you circle each other every damn day," Leonard started, "pretending like you're both happy with the arrangement you've got going on."

"Arrangement?" Lacey asked, her voice going high.

"Yeah, as if the two of you don't want something more."

"Jim and I want two different things," Lacey said with a sigh. Yes they did. When it all boiled down to it. Jim still just wanted sex and if they did, they could say goodbye to whatever platonic relationship they had now because Lacey wanted more than just sex.

There, she thought, I admitted it. I want a relationship with Jim. Did she love him? No, probably not, but that could change seeing as how she was attracted to him and they clicked well. But that was beyond the point. The point being that she enjoyed her mission in being Jim's friend and wasn't ready for it to end.

"Whatever you say," Leonard said, "I have to go back up to the Bridge, I've cooled off now, can probably look the damn Vulcan without exploding." He surveyed the sparse Med Bay, the wounded crew members completely healed and back to duty while the Vulcan elders just sat there...were they meditating? "And you're coming with me."

"Yes, sir," Lacey said with a slight grin.

* * *

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	13. Chapter 13

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13.

Lacey and Leonard were back in the bridge, of to the side-practically unseen but still there. Leonard still looked extremely irritated-more so than normal-but his irate behavior was no longer solely directed towards space or the universe in general, but towards a certain green blooded, Vulcan captain.

Lacey nibbled on her lower lip still feeling the familiar twinge in her gut that told her she should be in the Med Bay, not on the Bridge. But Leonard just snapped at her saying he was ordering her as her superior officer to follow him since excessive medical staff was not necessary at the moment.

On a display on the forward console, an alarm flashed. Chekov fiddled with the controls.

"Keptin, detecting unauthorized access to a water turbine control board," Chekov stated glancing between the acting captain and the console.

Spock moved from his father to Chekov, "Bring up video."

Chekov brings up dozens of security video image on one screen. Spock points to one, it enlarges, and we see Kirk and Scotty racing through the ship's engineering deck. Spock eyes narrow, moving quickly to the comm, "Security, this is the captain-seal the engineering deck and bring me the intruders in turbine station three-set phasers to stun."

Intruders, Lacey thought looking at Leonard who shrugged. She tried to inch her way so her view of the console wasn't obstructed by other parts of the Bridge but by the time she got a clear view, Chekov minimized the enlarged video. She released a breath. How were there intruders on the ship? They were moving at warp speed, it was impossible for anyone to beam onboard without engineering not noticing.

Suddenly, the doors of the main turbolift swished open and in walked Jim, a sopping wet man and two red shirted security officers.

Spock stalked towards Jim before asking the wet man, "Who are you?"

"I'm with him," he answered in a thick Scottish accent the same time Jim answered, "He's with me." Lacey could tell that Spock was more surprised by Jim's sudden arrival back onto the ship than the wet stranger. Hell, she was.

"We're travelling at warp speed-how did you manage to beam aboard this ship?" Spock asked intensely.

Jim stared up at Spock, his expression somewhat different than usual before hardening to its usual mask of arrogance, indifference and general sass, "You're the genius, you figure it out."

Lacey closed her eyes, this was not the time to sass Spock.

"As Captain of this vessel, I order you to answer the question."

"Well I'm not telling," Jim stated, pausing before tacking on a ' acting captain' at the end of his statement.

This obviously takes Spock off guard-whether it shows in his Vulcan composure or not. Lacey always thought Jim had the talent of confusing people of any race.

"Does that frustrate you?" Jim asked, most likely rhetorically, "My lack of cooperation..does it make you angry?"

What game was he playing? Lacey wondered as Spock focused on the wet Scot, "Are you a member of Starfleet?"

"Um yes," the man started, "Can I get a towel?"

Lacey looked at Bones and he nodded, she went to go get the man a towel from the kit that Leonard brought on the Bridge after her insistence that it be for emergency situations or if a medical emergency called and they couldn't get to the Bridge AND sift through their medical supplies at an appropriate time.

"Under penalty of court martial, I order you to explain to me how you beamed aboard this ship while moving at warp."

"Well-" he started.

"-Don't answer him," Jim told the man cutting Spock off, which most likely annoyed him.

"You WILL answer me," Spock ordered in his threatening calm manner.

The man looked between the two men, Lacey saw him weighing his options as she searched for the kit, "I'd rather not take sides," she heard him say."

"What is it with you, Spock?" Jim started, Lacey froze from her shifting to watch her friend step close to the captain, "Your planet was just destroyed" he paused, "Your mother murdered-and you're not even upset?"

"Your presumption that these experiences interfere with my abilities to command this ship is inaccurate-"

"And yet you were the one who said fear was necessary for command, I mean did you see his ship? Did you see what he did?"

Spock looked tense, but it may just be because she had a poor vantage point, "Yes, of course I-"

"So are you afraid or aren't you?"

"I will not allow you to lecture me about the merits of emotion."

Jim gets closer, "Then why don't you stop me."

Lacey watched this, tense, she noticed Sarek and McCoy shared her position during this...talk between the two.

"Step away from me, Mr. Kirk."

"What is it like? Not to feel? Anger. Or heartbreak. Or the need to stop at nothing to avenge the death of the woman who gave birth to you?"

Lacey blinked. She knew that Vulcans HAD feelings, they just repressed them but that statement. It kind of sounded like what Jim would want to do...avenge the death of his father. Stop at nothing to do so. That was most likely a partial reason as to why he wanted to go and fight Nero directly instead of rendezvous with the other Starfleet vessels. What was Jim trying to prove or do or say? What was he thinking? She usually knew what he was up to but this was just mindboggling.

"Back away," that was it. Lacey heard it. The anger in Spock's normally expressionless, dry voice. The repressed feelings were about to surface, explode. Like a volcano.

"You must not feel anything," Jim sneered stepping even closer, "It must not even compute for you! You must not even have loved her at all!"

And at that Spock let out a feral, if not primal, growl and he hit him! Lacey froze stepping away from her search. Jim goes to try and hit him back or block himself but Spock just delivers a series of powerful blows from all directions. Lacey looks towards the security officers but they're just watching their captain attack him. Spock slammed Jim against a control panel, something breaks but now he's choking him. Choking the life out of him.

Lacey walks away from her bad vantage point breathing out, "Jim", the same time Sarek lets out a sharp, "Spock."

At this everything, everything stops. Spock lets go of Jim and Jim gulps air desperate, tumbling forward. Spock staggers back. Jim can hardly speak and Lacey wants to rush towards him but finds her boots feel like lead, anchored to the ship's floor. She searches out Jim's eyes and see them staring at Spock, not with crippling hatred or spite...but with something resembling compassion?

Spock turns slowly seeing the stunned faces of the crew, terrified face of Lacey and worst, his father. He walks slightly dazed, with Jim coughing in the background, towards Leonard, "Doctor, I am no longer fit to duty. I herby relinquish my command on the grounds that I have been...emotionally compromised. Please note the time and date in the ship's log."

Lacey widened her eyes and looked at Leonard before Spock left the bridge, with Nyota following him until he exited completely. Sarek followed his son a beat later. Everyone just stands there in silence before the strange wet man, with his arms raised said, "I like this ship," he grinned as the crew looked at him, baffled, "you know it's exciting."

Leonard, with his usual flair and exasperation, "Well, congratulations, Jim. Now we've got no Captain and no goddamn first officer to goddamn replace him."

"Yeah we do," Jim breathed, still a little winded from the Spock thing.

"What?" Lacey asked confused.

"Pike made him first officer," Sulu stated pointing at Jim who had walked to the captain's chair.

Lacey's eyes widened before she pieced everything together. Jim was egging Spock on, TRYING to get the Vulcan to kill him so he would have to relinquish his role as acting captain and JIM would replace him. Yes, he definitely was referring to himself in that one statement where he said SPOCK should be doing everything in his power to avenge the death of his mother. Jim was doing that, in some kind of way, but for his father.

"You've got to be kidding me," Leonard asked, slightly outraged.

"Thanks for the support," Jim bit back.

"Jim," Lacey said walking up to stand beside Leonard.

Nyota walked up to him, "I sure hope you know what you're doing," before adding a biting, "captain" to the end.

"Yeah," Jim whispered, "Me too."

He pressed the button for the comm, "Attention crew of the Enterprise. This is James Kirk...Mr. Spock has resigned commission and advanced me to acting Captain. I know you were all expecting to regroup with the fleet, but I've ordered a pursuit course of the enemy ship to Earth. I want all departments at battle stations and ready in ten minutes. Either we're going down, or they are. Kirk out."

He clicked the comm off. Sitting there staring off into space...literally.

"Right," Lacey said, "Now. How the hell did you get aboard the ship?"

The crew looked shocked. This was the first clear phrase the nurse had said during her times on the bridge.

"Yeah," Jim said, "It's kind of complicated."

"I think I can handle it Jim," Lacey said planting her hands on the side of her hips, "I've been stuck on this ship, worrying about your sorry ass, I deserve some answers."

"I'm a PhD in astrophysics, I think I can handle it-how did you get back?" Sulu asked.

"You vant us to trust you but you von't tell us the truth?" Chekov asked.

"No, no, I won't-hey," Jim said standing up from his chair, "I don't have to tell you anything! Now listen: we need to figure out a way to catch up and get to Nero's ship."

Lacey made a face before stepping up close to Jim, "Well, when we hit ground, you have a lot of explaining to do Mister," Jim looked down at Lacey giving her an amused eyebrow twitch. He could see that she was not completely angry, more relieved that he was alive and back on board. But that wouldn't stop her from being firey about the whole ordeal.

"Come on Mr. Scott-was it?" Lacey said finally, giving Jim a nod, "Let's get you dry."

...

Leonard, Jim, Sulu and Nyota were grouped together basically contradicting Jim's plans. Lacey was off next to Mr. Scott-or Scotty as he preferred, who was drying himself off, now outfitted with a red crew shirt.

"Whatever we take, we need to get aboard Nero's ship undetected," Jim stated.

"We can't just go in there guns a blazing," Leonard refuted.

"I'm telling you the math doesn't support it," Sulu puzzled.

"Keptain," Chekov's voice called, "Keptain Kirk, Keptain Kirk, excuse me, plees could I?"

"Yes Chekov..."

"Based on ze Narada's course from Wulcan, I've projected that Nero vill travel past Saturn. If Meester Scott could drop out of warp behind von of Saturn's moons, say, Titan, the magnetic distortion from ze planet's rings vill make us inwisible to Nero's sensors. From Saturn, as long as undetected, we can beam aboard his ship," Chekov explained.

"Ah," Scotty said cleaning his ear out, "That just might work."

"Wait a minute kid," Leonard started, "Just how old are you."

"Sewenteen, sir," he answered, eyes bright and smile big. He knew he was a genius. Lacey thought he was adorable-so innocent and pure.

"Oh, oh, good, he's seventeen, Jim," Leonard informed him again.

"Doctor," a familiar voice interrupted, "Mr. Chekov is correct." Everyone turns, surprised, Spock has reentered the bridge, "I have reviewed his telemetry. If Mr. Sulu can maneuver us into position, I can beam aboard Nero's ship."

"I won't order you to do that, Mr. Spock."

"Romulans and Vulcans share a common ancestry. Our cultural similarities will make it easier for me to access their ship's computer to locate the device," Spock paused, "Also, my mother was human. Which makes Earth the only home I have left."

Lacey noticed Spock's focus on Nyota whose eyes smile back at him.

"Then I'm coming with you," Jim announced.

"I would cite regulation, but I know you will simply ignore it," Spock said.

"Jim," Lacey said for what seemed to be the trillionth time today.

"See," Jim said, ignoring her, "we're getting to know each other."

...

In the transport room...

On the communicator Scotty spoke, "Really? Fine job, Mr. Sulu, well done."

"How are we?" Jim asked walking into the room followed by Spock, Nyota and Lacey.

"Unbelievably enough, sir, we are in position," Scotty answered.

"Whatever happens Mr. Sulu, if you feel you have a tactical advantage fire on that ship. Even if we are still aboard. That's an order," Jim ordered. Lacey stood behind him.

"You better come back," Lacey whispered.

Jim smiled down at her softly, "Hey I promised, remember? And when have I ever steered you wrong?"

Lacey let out a breathy laugh, "Well, there was that one time you said I should wear that god awful green dress in public."

"Well, 99 times out of 100 still says I'm a safe bet," Jim said, "I thought you looked cute in that dress. Like everything else."

Lacey's breath hitched, she reached out and clutched his hands and stood on her tip toes, he rested his forehead on hers, "Just, promise me again, Jim. That you'll come back alive."

"I promise, Lace," Jim whispered.

Lacey bit her lip. She wanted, in that moment, to kiss him. She had wanted to kiss him before. When he crashed in her dorm room back at the Academy and they woke up together, the time she was so excited to pass her exams she felt she could conquer the world, after she made him laugh so hard he fell off a bar stool, when they were slightly tipsy and beat those two misogynistic buffoons at pool...

So many times. But she stepped away and gave him a kiss on the cheek instead while wishing him good luck. She didn't want their first kiss to be at a time when she didn't know if he was coming back or not. Sure, she might regret not doing so if he didn't but on the other hand, if they did and there was indeed that connection, that she hadn't just made it up due to repressed hormones of not having sex in years...she might not let him leave.

She gave him one last smile and walked quickly back to the bridge.

After she left, back in the transport room, Jim saw Spock kiss Uhura, learned that her first name was Nyota and the fact that Spock-the logic based Vulcan-was willing to express emotion so publicly meant that he was worried they might not come back.

And at that moment, before Scotty beamed them aboard the Narada, Jim wondered if he-too should have kissed Lacey. Just once, so he knew the feeling in case they perished.

The universe only knew how much he wanted to in the past.

* * *

_**IMPORTANT**__**: see it's bolded, italicized and underlined...this story will continue after the movie does...continuing on with events unrelated to the movie. Just letting you know because the move's end is slowly approaching...**_


	14. Chapter 14

**Author's Note:**

**So sorry for not updating sooner...but thank you for all the wonderful reviews. For favoriting and following this story!**

**Here's the next chapter!**

* * *

14.

They let her sit in the captain's chair. She shouldn't be sitting in the captain's chair. This was against two different starship regulations. That was what she insisted when Leonard and Sulu ordered her to take a seat in the only spot unused.

She was shaking like a leaf and the people on the Bridge probably thought she was going to feint at any moment. Great, Lacey thought, now I'm a liability. One more thing for them to worry about. She could already feel Leonard's gaze fix on her every moment or so.

But as she scanned the members of the Bridge working the control panels, the young Ensign Chekov and Lieutenant Sulu, she seemed to be the last thing on their mind. Which was good. They should be focusing on Jim and Spock's vitals. Lacey knew that if Nyota were here she would be staring intensely between the screen and her PADD, most likely checking Spock's vitals. But she wasn't here. Where was she? sure Lacey was the first to leave but what was keeping here. Lacey wished they would let her monitor Jim's but she knew her place was not amongst the bridge crew. Her white uniform gave that away quickly.

She gnawed on her lip, skipping nibbling altogether in her stressed state, and tugged on her braid as everything was too quiet, to empty, the bridge way too white at the moment...none of it helped her anxiety. In that moment, she remembered herself down in the Med Bay, totally cut off from the happenings up here and was grateful. She'd never get stressed over lack of communication between the bridge and the Bay. She understood why. They can't have stressed, worried, nervous nurses and doctors operating and healing people. Lacey was sure she wouldn't be able to.

Thank goodness that there was no one injured left in the Sick Bay now, they had cleared that out pretty quickly-save for a few people that had broken more than one bone and were confined to rest on a bio bed.

Lacey forced her eyes to stop fluttering about the control panel, the workers and forced her neck to stop from craning to see their PADDs and screens for any signs of vitals. Sulu had a look of deep concentration as he tried to keep the ship concealed. Fat lot of good that's going to do. Knowing Jim, he probably went on board with stealth but then, at the first sign of conflict, barged through the rest of that jellyfish styled ship guns a-blazing.

That almost made her smile. Jim.

And now she's tugging her braid with a renewed fervor because he has to come back. He has to.

Leonard sent her one of his daily "check-up" looks and noticed the braid. Now Leonard was not, in any way, as close to Lacey as Jim was. Hell, the only reason the two ever started being friends was because and through Jim. They had seen each other in Starfleet Medical Academy, of course, but only then it was a hi how are you kind of acquaintanceship.

But Leonard and Lacey grew close, bonding over their mutual annoyance over Jim and their complete understanding of all his quirks and idiosyncrasies. And Leonard, being a doctor, paid close notice to a few of Lacey's tells. For example, braid pulling equals anxiety.

Leonard walked over to the captain's chair, which as an afterthought, was not a good place to put Lacey. Yeah, Bones, he thought sarcastically to himself (oddly enough his sarcastic inner voice sounded a lot like the impulsive acting captain) put the emotionally unstable girl, who just let a man she's attracted to onto a ship where he could be killed on, in his chair. The one he can't occupy himself seeing as he's risking his life on an alien ship that was responsible in the death of his father.

"Lacey," Leonard said gently, "You don't have to stay on the Bridge."

"Yes, but this is the only place where I'll be informed of what's going on," Lacey said sitting up straight and gripping the arms of the chair tightly, "In the Med Bay, I'll be completely cut off. I won't know when he comes back until after when someone's told me."

"What's wrong with that?" Leonard asked, "I'm worried about you, you don't have to torture yourself by staying here."

Lacey stood up quickly, her eyes alight with sudden anger, "I'm not helpless Leonard. I'm not some damsel in distress, alright I am in distress, but not to the point where I can't function."

"You're practically catatonic just sitting here staring at nothing," Leonard insisted.

"I'm worried, sure, but aren't we all. Death is looming over our heads," Lacey said putting her hands up, "I have nothing to do on the Bridge, I am a nurse, not an officer like you. I don't have a placement. So I'm sitting here, waiting."

Leonard just stared at her.

"We all cope in our own ways Leonard," Lacey insisted, "And this is mine. So unless you want me to do something or manage something on the bridge this is how I'm going to look like. Thank you for caring about me but I don't need it."

Leonard nodded slowly going back to his post. Damn that girl was as stubborn as a rock. So was Jim. He snorted quietly as he fiddled with his PADD, no wonder they weren't together yet.

And then just like that all hell broke loose. Lacey leaped out of her chair as the emergency lights started beeping on the bridge adding their red color to the otherwise white Bridge.

Nyota burst into the Bridge. Lacey had seen her with Spock when she was with Jim. But Lacey had left first and made it back to the Bridge as quickly as possible.

"They've activated the drill," Chekov said punching the screen.

"Communications and transporter inoperative," Nyota said rushing to her station, "Sulu please tell me you have them, otherwise we won't be able to beam them back."

"Kirk and Spock on their own now," Sulu stated grimly.

Lacey's eyes widened. Leonard caught her stare with his own concerned look. She remembered what Jim told Sulu right before he beamed aboard Nero's ship. He said to take the shot, if they had an advantage, whether or not he and Spock had beamed off the ship.

But he had also promised her he would come back. And if there was one thing she knew about James Kirk was that he kept his promises. At least to her.

...

Sulu and Chekov had sprung into action pressing buttons, Chekov navigating while Sulu steered the ship simultaneously.

"Prepare to fire," Sulu announced.

"Ready," Chekov nodded.

And they began to fire against Nero's ship which was coming into view, huge and shaped like a jellyfish. Why the hell would someone want a ship shaped like a jellyfish, was one of the thoughts that flew past Lacey's mind as the jellyfish ship fired back.

...

Black hole. There's a freaking black hole, they could almost feel it, onboard the Enterprise. Almost feel the sucking intensity of the ever-expanding black hole.

It's a rush, aboard the Enterprise as soon as they received the transmission from Jim, "Enterprise now."

Lacey, still standing, turned to Leonard sharply, "I'll gather the med-team."

Leonard nodded, "I'm coming with you."

The two of them ran to the Med-Bay.

"Prepare your supplies, Captain Kirk and Commander Spock, and potentially Captain Pike, are to be beamed back aboard," Leonard barked out the order to the medical staff in the Bay, "Med-team one follow Nurse Archer. We're going to meet them in the Transport Bay."

With that Lacey, Leonard and their team of med-techs ran to the transport room where they met Uhura and a band of officers awaiting the arrival of the captain, the acting captain and the science officer. You could cut the tension in the room with a knife as Scotty tried to locate their signal.

"Locking on their signal," Scotty muttered, "And now."

They all looked up and sure enough three bodies started to materialize.

Jim, who was supporting a weak looking Captain Pike said, "Nice timing, Scotty."

"Never beamed two targets from two places onto the same pad before!" Scotty said applauding himself.

Leonard rushed up to Captain Pike and Jim, relieving Jim of the slumped over Pike with the help of a med-tech.

Lacey quickly scanned him with her medical tricorder, glancing quickly at Jim who gave her a small nod in return. She bit her lip, that was all the communication they would have until they either died or resolved the situation and landed back at Starfleet Academy. Lovely.

As they exited the Transport Bay Lacey heard Scotty's distinct voice call out, " That was pretty good!"

Once they exited the Transport Bay Lacey showed Leonard the tricorder's readings.

"We're going to need gastric stimulators," Leonard called as the med techs ran ahead, "Let's prep him for surgery, now!"

"Yes, Sir," Lacey said rushing ahead of Leonard with the rest of the team to the Med Bay to prep.

She started punching codes into the PADD above a bio bed, "Nurse Lacey Archer preparing for surgery under Dr. Leonard McCoy."

The PADD acknowledged her voice and she typed in Captain Christopher Pike to look up his medical records. Usually only the chief medical examiner or other doctors could get a voice recognition to access the medical files but Leonard made sure that she would have access when/if they would need it when he appointed her his 'second'.

Her eyes flittered across his clean records, not allergic to anything, had surgery before, broken a wrist an d a leg before enlisting...

"We clear," Leonard asked as they hauled Pike onto the bio bed.

"Yeah," Lacey said.

"Okay," Leonard nodded, "Prep the hyposprays and get ready for surgery."

They were all back at Starfleet Academy. They had landed the U.S.S. Enterprise in its hanger. Lacey went up to the Bridge to get to Jim some odd moments after they landed. S he would have gone straight away but she stayed after to clean up after Pike's surgery. A successful surgery if she might add. One where she did not faint, have an anxiety attack or puncture any necessary vein. And she was rather smug about her first surgery. But she was entitled.

However, once she reached the Bridge, she realized that staying after might not have been the best idea. She had thought that EVERYONE was staying after. The med staff was staying after to clean the Medical Bay and she was pretty sure she saw some engineering red shirts with mops going down to the Engineering Rooms for some reason. Now that she thought about it, it probably had something to do with why Scotty was so wet when he first appeared on the Bridge.

Speaking of the Bridge, it was empty. None of the navigation, communication or any of people and officers she had seen during her time up here.

The sound of whistling hit her ears as she turned and saw a man in a blue shirt walked into the bridge. She didn't know him so he obviously wasn't medical so that was probably a science blue.

"Hello," Lacey called.

"Hi, how can I help you?" the man asked taking in her medical whites.

"Have you seen James Kirk in the ship or has he left?" Lacey asked, shifting her weight onto her left side.

"He left," the man shrugged, "Wanted to stay but an Admiral came on board wanting to meet him. Probably to promote him."

"Okay, thank you," Lacey smiled. She exited the ship wanting to get to her dorm as soon as possible. She'd go visit Nyota...but she was probably with Mr. Spock. She wanted to see Annie and reconvene with her about their time up in space.

Before she exited the ship she saw Sarek, standing with his hands behind his back staring at a PADD. Lacey tugged her braid and started walking towards him, knowing she had to say something.

"Mister," Lacey paused wondering if that was how she should address him, "Um, Ambassador?" Lacey hesitated as the Vulcan turned towards her, "Sarek."

"Greetings, Nurse Archer," the older man said, "Is there anything you needed?"

"Um," Lacey stuttered giving her braid another tug, "No, I just wished to apologize for any discomfort I may have caused you back when I was checking you up at the Sick Bay."

"Discomforts?" Sarek asked, "Of what nature? Your check up procedures were sound and by the book. I have no complaints."

"That's not what I meant," Lacey said with a smile and a breathy, nervous laugh. She rocked on her boots, "What I'm trying to say is that I understand that Vulcans are a private people. There's little we, earthlings, know about your customs and culture. But my grandfather visited Vulcan once and apparently formed a...camaraderie...with a Vulcan there."

She looked up at Sarek who was just staring at here, "When my grandfather died, he came to the funeral," Lacey smiled, "I remembered everyone kind of stared at him, wondering why he was there, I was four at the time. I was only kid brave enough to talk with him. He told me a story about his T'hy'la."

"I understand, from what he told me, was that it is very rare for Vulcans to find their T'hy'la since their marriages are arranged. And that when they do, they do not speak of it," Lacey said looking down, "So I'm sorry if I disrespected you or your culture by mentioning it."

"It is alright," Sarek said, "I do not wish for Spock to become estranged from me. So I must thank you."

Lacey looked up and smiled warmly at the older Vulcan, "No problem."

"Live long and prosper Nurse Archer," Sarek said giving her the Vulcan gesture.

"And you as well," Lacey said returning the gesture.

...

She stepped into the hanger and a chill went through her body. The last time she was here she was being ushered onto the U.S.S. Enterprise. Lacey let out a gust of breath she was holding and bit her lip.

She noticed a Vulcan man walking around the hanger. He looked lost. So in the spirit of her helping Vulcans she went to him.

"Hello, sir," Lacey called, "Are you lost? Can I help you?"

The man turned around to face her and she was hit with a sense of familiarity towards him. And wondered how she could have possibly met him before to gain this sense.

"No, I am quit fine Lacey," the man said.

Her eyes widened, "Do I know you?"

"In another life," the man said with a miniscule smile.

In another life, Lacey mouthed her eyebrows narrowing in confusion, "How is that possible?"

The Vulcan just stared at her.

"Are you saying that you're from another dimension," Lacey trailed until something in her mind clicked. The familiarity of his face, the alternate dimension, "Oh my god."

"You were always faster at piecing things together than Jim," the man, who Lacey had deduced to be...Spock...from another dimension.

"How is this possible?" Lacey asked before shaking her head, "Wait, I don't want to know, it'll just make me anxious."

The man's face warmed instantly, "I have definitely missed you Lacey...Archer is it?"

"Of course it's Archer, why did I go by another name?" Lacey asked, "In your dimension?"

"When I met you, you were already Mrs. Lacey Kirk."

"I was what?" Lacey said in a dangerously low voice and wide eyes.

Spock, from another dimension, smiled, "You were already married to Jim when we met."

"What?" Lacey asked again.

"In my world, both Jim's father and yours did not die and in fact became quite close friends once Jim's father became captain and yours, his chief medical officer. You two grew up together, apparently friends since infancy," Spock told her, "Best friends for your entire life, married young and what not."

Lacey took a step back, "Um, does Jim know about this?"

"No, from what I have gathered, Jim is somewhat different than the Jim I know, emotionally that is," this Spock said, "He might not have handled the information well."

"I don't know what I was like in your universe," Lacey started, "But I'm not exactly easy going in this one."

"But you do have feelings for Jim, and he shares them with you, but I have a feeling you are far more proactive than he is."

"And I have a feeling you are slightly delusional and are trying to be some kind of deranged Cupid, but...in my world Jim and I are friends...nothing more. Whatever we had, whatever you think we have is nothing more than excessive adrenaline and clouded judgment. Nothing more. Now, if you'll excuse me," Lacey said looking down and walking away, out of the hanger away into the Academy.

* * *

**Conflicted about this chapter and telling Lacey and what not. But I promise...I HAVE A PLAN!**

**So review, favorite and follow! It makes my day.**


	15. Chapter 15

**Author's Note:**

**New Chapter!**

**Be prepared for a heavily in denial!Lacey and Jim...sorry :(**

**But let's be honest, who expected everything to be okay right away...**

* * *

15.

Married. To Jim. Jim Kirk. James Tiberius Kirk.

What?

In another life, sure, I guess it seemed plausible. That Spock even seemed different than the Spock she knew so her life and her...other... life couldn't possibly end up the same or even be the same. For all Lacey knew she wasn't a nurse in this other life, maybe she was a freaking captain in that universe.

Everything had to be different. It HAD to be. Her father would be alive for Christ's sake, that alone was probably the biggest difference. Having a prominent father figure definitely would have shaped her life differently than the one she was living now. Another thing was that her mother would...care and be around more than she was now. Her alternate universe self probably got more contact with her mother than she did. And her and Jim grew up together? Jim was from Iowa and Lacey was from Alabama. That means she would have grown up in a completely different environment, a different neighborhood, a different state.

She probably had a completely different personality in old Spock's universe.

Lacey stopped just outside the hanger. Her left hand twitched before turning back around and almost sprinting back to where alternate universe Spock was before.

He was still there looking off in the distance. Lacey noticed her universe Spock walking off towards the left wing exit.

Lacey needed to talk with alternate universe Spock. She needed to ask him about alternate universe Lacey. She needed to make sure that her alternate persona was different from her own personality in this universe. Just to make sure that there was no way her life would end up like her "other" life.

Her feelings, whatever they were, Lacey was certain were the offspring of the adrenaline caused by the mission they were just on and anxiety that there was a possibility Jim wouldn't come back. They weren't, couldn't, possibly be serious feelings. Yet. Or, or at all.

She had sprinklings of desires for Jim here and there before but they were small infatuations. Small desires. She was a woman after all, a woman who had not been in a serious relationship since before she enlisted in Starfleet. A few small relationships thrown in once she enlisted but nothing serious and then here comes Jim.

She met him her second year of Starfleet and pretended to be aloof about it until she really became indifferent. She knew his womanizing ways and didn't want to be that girl so she settled for his friend. He crashed in her dorm when Leonard got annoyed with him. They were close, she was practically equal with Leonard. Jim talked to Leonard about guy stuff and Jim shared a bed with Lacey.

She shared a freaking bed with the man. Lacey would love to meet any woman, who was attracted to men, who wouldn't feel even the smallest tinge of attraction for a man, completely unrelated to her, she shared a bed with. Honestly, if she ever met such a woman she would immediately beg to learn her ways.

And it's not like she didn't want to be married to Jim, honestly he wasn't the last person on her list. She was sure that if Jim was able to commit, he would be a perfectly good husband but...no. Her and Jim? Something she wished, sure, but it would never work out. Not her and her Jim. Maybe parallel her and parallel Jim. Maybe in another universe. But not in her universe.

"Hi...um Spock," Lacey said, unsure what to call him.

"You may call me Prime," Spock Prime said with an understanding look.

"Okay, do you think you can tell me about the Lacey you know?" Lacey asked, "You don't have to go into great detail, just the basics maybe?"

Spock Prime looked at her with some sadness.

Lacey's eyes widened, "Oh my gosh, I am so sorry," she had completely forgot that Prime was in a DIFFERENT universe than his own. Completely separated from his friends and family. God, she was an idiot.

"I'm so sorry, so sorry," Lacey said shaking her head as if that would erase what she just said.

"No," Prime said softly, "It is not what you think it is. The Lacey Archer I know died a month before I...left my universe."

"Oh," Lacey whispered. She was dead in another universe. That was weird. Surprisingly, she was okay that there were other universes that someone with her DNA and name lived in but the fact that her "alter ego" was dead was kind of unsettling.

"It's fine," Prime said holding up a hand (but Lacey could tell he wasn't fine), "The Lacey I know, the Lacey Kirk I know."

Lacey tugged her braid hearing her name followed by Jim's.

"Was easy going, studious, intelligent," Prime said looking over her shoulder, "She had to be, being the captain of her own starship."

"Captain," Lacey breathed out, "Captain of a starship. Hunhhh."

"She was definitely a take charge kind of woman," Prime said with a nod, "And according to Jim, when they were at Starfleet she was quite the party."

"What about Nyota? Was she friends with her?" Lacey asked.

"No," Prime said thinking about it, "I don't think they were close."

Lacey nodded dumbly, "Okay. Thank you."

She wanted to ask more. Wanted to hear more. But she could already tell while both of them were studious and intelligent, she knew that she wasn't outgoing or the life of the party or a take charge kind of woman or a freaking captain.

Oh my god she was a captain in that life. Lacey knew she had a feeling that she could be a captain. She had felt that small plug that maybe, just maybe she could be something different than a nurse. A nurse she only wanted to be to impress her dead father.

Lacey tugged out the hair tie that was holding her braid in place and ran a frustrated hand through her curls. She was so sure she wanted to be a nurse. She loved helping people not leading them. But a small part of her couldn't help but wonder how her other life in that alternate universe was. Was it a happier life than the one she had?

She ran a hand across her tired face before hearing someone shout, "Party in lecture hall five!"

Alcohol and loud music. Exactly what she needed to forget. Not the healthiest option, but the quickest, Lacey thought grimly as she followed the crowd to the lecture hall.

...

Everyone was partying. The Admirals had on their earplugs and the teachers were in their office or in their own dorms. They knew what was going on but they were ignoring it. Nice of them really. Some of the officers were at the party looking on at the less experienced cadets who were dancing in happiness from going on their first mission ever. Most of them had on the biggest smirks as if remembering their first mission. Others were looking down their noses at them but those were mainly shoved up in the corner, completely ignored.

The giant lecture halls had turned into a pulsating dance party, complete with colored lights and loud music-courtesy of the engineering cadets, and drinks prepared by the science students who were using their chemistry skills to mix drinks.

Lacey and Jim were sitting down in the chairs that they couldn't move in the lecture hall, each with an alcoholic drink in hand, empty shot glasses scattered on the desks in front of them. Lacey was giggling madly practically buzzing from the alcohol. She leaned again Jim's shoulder to keep her balance due to her insane giggling.

"You know, I'm surprised Nyota isn't here," Jim shouted over the loud music.

Lacey rolled her eye at Jim's overuse of Nyota's first name, "It's perfectly logical, Jim," at this Jim choked on his drink, "the music is loud, the company unruly, and she will have much better conversation with Mr. Spock than anyone else."

Jim laughed heartily butting his head softly with hers before something caught his eye, "Oh hot blonde, how do I look?"

Lacey removed her head from his shoulder and looked at him incredulously.

"Slightly drunk," Lacey bit out, bitter.

"Good, liquid confidence," Jim said standing and walking out of the desk area, "But I don't look hammered, right?"

"Yup," Lacey said with a tight smile, "You look like you're completely in control of your choices."

"Good," Jim said giving a thumbs up, "Because I am."

"Awesome," Lacey muttered as she watched Jim saunter over to a leggy blonde she recognized. But the last time she saw her she was wearing a science blue shirt.

"Awesome," Lacey said to herself looking down at her hands lying on her lap.

She stood up and walked back to her dorm, slowly, trying not to trip in heels. She was stupid for wearing them. She should have just walked right to the lecture hall dance but she felt that she had to impress...him.

Lying down on her bed, in her pajamas, surrounded by the comfort of her Starfleet issued comforters. There she smiled sadly to herself. Yeah, Jim and her. They wouldn't work.

...

In a blur of frantic hands, deep breathing and the sound of kissing Jim and his blonde companion stumbled through the sliding door to the dorm of the blonde.

Jim kissed her deeply, probing his tongue through her mouth. She was good, he had to give her that, knew exactly what not to do with her hands and tongue. Usually the girls he picked up at bars and clubs were too...slobbery and gropey.

He led her to the bed and kissed down her through only lifting his head when she took off his black shirt, the one he kept on to show that he WAS the Jim Kirk that snuck onto the Enterprise and saved their mission single handedly. Helps impress the ladies.

"Oh Jim," the blonde moaned out.

Jim went back up to her mouth to silence her. He didn't mind it when women let out sighs of ecstasy but moaning was...odd. He wasn't a fan of it.

"Mhm," the blonde let out. What was her name? Jim racked his slightly muddled brain as the blonde flipped him over so she was on top.

It ended with a y, he was certain. You know what else ends with a y? his traitorous brain asked, Lacey. You remember her right? She's the reason you're with this blonde you can't be bothered to remember her name.

Jim narrowed his eyes as he tried to focus on the blonde. But all he could see as he kissed her neck was blonde hair, reminding him of Lacey's.

Suddenly, he remembered how he had almost kissed her right before going onto Nero's ship. He remembered how much he had wanted to kiss her. He remembered the night they first met at the Metal how she easily deflected his come on and he let himself actually not care about how he acted in front of people.

She was one of the first people he actually felt the need to explain himself. Usually he just let people judge him based on first impressions and what they saw but for some reason he wanted Lacey to know him and he liked the fact that she knew HIM.

And for some reason, he didn't like the fact he was about to have sex with someone who didn't know him.

He tried to ignore it but then his traitorous brain started to think what it was like to...you know...have sex with Lacey. What would she do?

Would she moan?

Would she be good? Would they have that connection? Is any of their compatibility, the fact that they had deep conversations, spent so much time with each other and seemed to have everything in common mean anything?

Was that moment on the Enterprise just adrenaline or did it mean something?

He wasn't lying to himself when he said that he had wanted to kiss her. He had. He had wanted to kiss her on other occasions as well.

He had wanted to kiss her when they first met-sure that might have been the alcohol controlling his thoughts but they say the thought still counts, he had wanted to kiss her when he put his head on her shoulder as she tried to push him away to study for an exam he was distracting her from, he had wanted to kiss her when he was fervently trying to study for the Kobayashi Maru test and her head was on his back her hair shining and spilling over his stomach when he turned around.

And he definitely wanted to kiss her when he woke up next to her that morning after they hustled the two jerks in the bar. She had felt so warm and they just...fit.

He pulled away from the blonde he didn't care about any more.

"Listen, I just remembered I have something to do," Jim said, "I'm so sorry. It's just, it's important."

"What?" the blonde said, "we were having so much fun."

"Sorry," Jim said as he put his shirt back on and walked out of her dorm. In the back of his mind he felt bad for abandoning the girl but the majority of his mind and body were on autopilot for Lacey's dorm room.

...

It was dark. Jim saw her leave earlier so he knew she was either asleep or reading. So he took off his shoes and crawled in behind her.

Lacey felt heavy arms going around her and she opened her eyes slowly. Blearily she turned around and got an eyeful of Jim's bright blue eyes smiling down at her.

"Hey," she mumbled, "How was the blonde?"

"You tell me," Jim whispered, "I left her."

Lacey felt a smile growing on her face she couldn't control so she turned around and snuggled back towards Jim as he pulled her tighter.

"I met Spock Prime," Lacey spoke after a few moments of silence.

"It's strange isn't it?" Jim asked, "That there is a universe where we exist in another form and have completely different mannerisms."

"You think we're completely different from our alternate universe selves?" Lacey asked.

"Well Spock's a lot different from Prime, so we must be different than our 'Prime' selves," Jim reasoned.

There was another silence and Lacey heard Jim's heavy breathing.

"Prime told me my alternate universe self was a captain," Lacey whispered, "I know I said earlier that I definitely should be a nurse, that I only want to help people not lead them. But what if? I thought I had a complete decision made but then this whole alternate universe came up and I'm nervous."

Jim pulled her closer, nuzzling into her hair completely ignorant to Lacey's beating heart.

"Lacey, we are not the same as our alternate universe selves," Jim muttered, "Not at all so you need to stop thinking like that, okay?"

Lacey felt herself shiver when Jim's sigh came into contact with the skin of her neck. Good she was right. She was completely different from her other self. Her life wouldn't end up like the other one.

And that should have appeased Lacey's anxiety but as she felt Jim breathing behind her, nuzzling into the space between her neck and shoulder...she wasn't so sure.

* * *

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	16. Chapter 16

**Author's Note:**

**New Chapter!**

**Thanks for reviewing, favoriting and following continue doing so!**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

16.

Jim woke up smelling lavender. Or at least he thought it was lavender. He always wondered about the "true" smell of lavender was. Was it what he smelled in perfume, in the strange vial Sulu had in his dorm that was labeled 'lavender', or was it the smell coming from Lacey's hair?

But that was besides the point. The point was the fact he knew the difference between the lavender in Lacey's hair and regular lavender perfume off some random girl.

He smiled slightly burying his nose deeper into the warmth of her back neck. Lacey let out a sigh of laughter at the tickling sensation before turning around, looping an arm around him and burrowed deep into his chest.

"Go back to sleep," Lacey muttered.

"No, the day is young we need to do something exciting," Jim said but he didn't remove his hold on Lacey.

"Yeah," came Lacey's muffled reply, "Because saving Earth from a crazy Romulan from an alternate dimension wasn't exciting enough."

Jim chuckled before closing his eyes. In all honesty, he didn't mind this time with Lacey. They had woken up and fallen asleep together a lot before. Sometimes in his dorm but most often in hers. Her roommate was almost never in her dorm and sometimes Bones was just annoying enough to make him want to leave the dorm. Bones was a great guy, the closest thing to a brother he was going to get but the man was just so damn irritable after a long day.

Besides, sleeping here, with Lacey. Just seemed kind of right. Jim wasn't sure why but it was nice nonetheless.

...

Lacey was a woman on a mission. A mission for answers.

Like how on Earth was she able to be a nurse on a starship before graduating from the Medical Academy. It seemed unlikely that Starfleet would even think to send her up because that would be an awful, dumb idea. She could have potentially killed someone.

She had experience in surgery, she had assisted before in a practice seminar and in real life with Leonard on Captain Pike. It was just as stressful as she imagined a real life surgery would be.

The entire time she was thinking: Oh shit, oh shit and a smattering of If we do this wrong we could freaking kill Captain Pike and I will never graduate Starfleet Medical Academy. But it got easier as the surgery kept going. Leonard asked for tools and instruments and she handed him tools and instruments. She kept major vessels from rupturing and monitored his frequencies.

Reaching the head of the Medical Academy's office. Lacey pressed the button above the panel to let the person in the office know she was outside. The doors slid open and Lacey was greeted by a gray haired Dr. Campbell.

"Hi Dr. Campbell," Lacey said softly tangling her fingers together.

"Hello, Miss Archer," Dr. Campbell greeted, "Or should I say Nurse Archer?"

Lacey's eyes widened and she let out a nervous laugh, "Yeah that's what I came by for, I hope I'm not intruding on anything."

"No, it's fine, carry on," the retired doctor said gesturing for her to continue.

"Okay," Lacey started, "I just wanted to know why I was issued onto a starship, I haven't even graduated yet."

"Well you're graduating this year in a short amount of time so it seemed like a good way to get some field experience," Dr. Campbell said with a smile.

Lacey just looked at him, eyebrows furrowed and a confused expression on her face, "What do you mean I'm graduating this year? I can't be graduating this year, I've got another year of classes still."

Dr. Campbell gave her an expression of disbelief, "Yes of course, your professors unanimously agreed that you were a unique case of drive and intelligence. A lot. So we had a board meeting and cane to a unanimous decision, we would speed you through your third year so now you are technically in your last year and will be graduating."

"What?" Lacey asked, "I've been taking advanced classes, fourth year classes, and I had no idea? Where any of you going to inform me of this?"

"Didn't you notice that there were new people in your class?" Dr. Campbell asked.

"There are more than 50 people in my classes every year," Lacey said, "I can't remember all of them."

"We spoke to your mother, she said she would tell you the good news," Dr. Campbell looked confused.

Lacey stood up straighter, moving her hands to her sides while tightening them into fists. She gave the doctor a tight lipped smile before nodding, "Thank you for this honor and thank you for seeing me."

"It is not a problem, congratulations on your advanced placement, Nurse Archer," Doctor Campbell said. Lacey could tell he wanted to say more, probably wanted to ask why she hadn't already received this news from her seemingly 'excited mother'. But from her clenched fists to her tight lipped expression he could probably insinuate that this was a personal matter.

Which it was and she planned on resolving the matter, immediately.

Back in her dorm Lacey was sending a video message to her mother. She was sitting on her bed, silently fuming in rage. How dare she?

First, she misses their yearly communication. It was not so hard. One time a year, at any time, there was no specified date at all. Any time, just once a freaking year Lacey's mother had to make a call to talk to her for a mere thirty minutes. It's not difficult to try and make an effort with your only daughter.

Secondly, this was a once in a lifetime occurrence, an honor that only happened in the academy once in a blue moon and it was bestowed upon HER, not any of her other classmates, not Mindy Jennings who thought she was better than her or Lester Hastings who could memorize anything in a matter of seconds but HER, Lacey Archer. And her own mother failed to tell her. A moment that was supposed to be celebrated immediately was now who knows how far belated.

Her video connection beeped as it connected with her mother's off planet somewhere. Lacey's eyes closed and she took a deep breath. Her mantra whenever her mother called once a year went through her head, Do not explode, do not explode, she's sadder than you.

Her mother's face filled the video screen as her voice shrieked, "Lacey, sweetheart!"

"Hi, mom," Lacey said tightly.

"How are you doing dear?" her mother asked, "It's been so long since we last talked."

"Yeah," Lacey nodded smiling sarcastically, "More than a year. You didn't call me last year."

Honestly, Lacey could have called her mom. And she did. Twice. But after being ignored twice, she stopped and just gave up.

"Oh, I was so busy last year," her mother waved off. And that's when Lacey stopped listening. Yes. Her mother was busy. Too busy for her daughter. Too distracted for her daughter. Too sad to be a mother. Too busy mourning to be a mother. Too busy going through marriage after marriage to be a mother. Too busy going off planet to be a mother. Story of Lacey's life.

She was always on the backburner of her mother's life. Men and dating and travel even came before her. She wasn't bitter about her mother trying to find happiness but was Lacey really not enough. Was the love between a mother and daughter a myth or was it just Lacey's misfortune.

"Mom," Lacey said, interrupting her mother's spiel about Anthony her latest husband, "Why didn't you tell me about me being put into advanced placement at the Med Academy?"

Her mother stopped and got a faraway look, "In all honesty doll, I forgot."

"You forgot," Lacey deadpanned, "You forgot about the fact that I had received a higher placement a school as prestigious as the Medical Academy."

Her mother was silent.

"What could you possibly have been doing that was more important?" Lacey demanded.

"Now, listen here, I am your mother show some respect," her mother said sternly.

"My mother? Well you've been doing a crap job at it. Missing almost my entire childhood, leaving the responsibility to grandma and grandpa. You know what?" Lacey snapped, "It's okay that you missed the monthly call and you don't have call again, okay?"

"Okay," Lacey answered for her mother cutting the transmission.

She stood up quickly and picked up her PADD before rushing out of her dorm. She entered the main building at the Academy with one thought, to find Jim. She needed to talk to him. Whenever either of them was having parent problems-mom problems they would comfort and complain to each other over many beers. Both of them had the misfortune of a negligent parent.

But in her haste and rage she had ran into a solid object sending her tumbling on her butt. Her PADD skidded out in front of her and she crawled towards it. But as her hand reached it another picked it up and helped her stand as well.

Lacey looked up and her vision was filled with the view of smiling chocolate brown eyes.

"Sorry about that," brown eyes said.

As Lacey stood up she saw the rest of his muscular frame looking fine in his cadet uniform and dark hair that complimented his brown eyes.

"No, I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention to where I was going," Lacey stammered looking into his eyes.

Brown eyes gave her an amazing white smile that almost rendered Lacey catatonic, "It's completely fine, but if you want I can make it up to you."

"What?" Lacey asked widening her eyes.

"How about drinks on me tonight?" he asked.

"But I don't know your name," Lacey stuttered.

"Charles Ellings," he said holding out his hand.

"Lacey Archer," she breathed.

"Oh, you were a nurse on the Enterprise," Charles said.

"You were on the Enterprise?" Lacey asked, clutching her PADD to her chest.

"Yeah, I was an engineer that thankfully missed the blast so I didn't have to go to the Med Bay, but one of my buddies wasn't as fortunate and got patched up by you," he said with another blinding smile.

"Oh," Lacey said trying to smile as well, "That's cool." She finished lamely.

Charles gave her an awkward look, "So, I'll see you tonight at the Metal."

"Sure," Lacey brightened, "Meet you there."

...

Lacey made it to Jim's dorm feeling slightly better than she had rushing out of her own dorm.

"Hey Lacey what's up?" Jim asked.

Lacey looked at Bones who was busy on his PADD then back at Jim. She had ran out of her dorm to tell Jim and have their normal complaining session then drink. But...now she had plans for a drink already. So maybe the complaining session could wait.

"I just got a date!" Lacey said holding her hands over her head, her PADD aloft before freezing, "Well at least I think it's a date."

"Wait, a date, what?" Jim asked bewildered.

"Don't look so surprised," Lacey said tapping him on the head and missing the look of amusement Leonard gave Jim, "I ran into him, literally."

"Who is he?" Jim demanded. Lacey had dated other guys in the two years that he had known her but this just felt weird to him. So he just opted for staring at her while she gushed about some guy with great eyes who was a part of the engineering team on the Enterprise.

"Sounds fun," Jim said with a fake grin.

"Right?" Lacey said, "I've got to get ready."

"See you," Leonard said with a wave.

Jim waited for Lacey to walk out of their dorm

room before turning to Leonard, "Up for a trip to the bar."

Leonard raised his eye at Jim with a slight grin at him. He knew that look that was Jim's fighting look. And he wasn't going on a mission or a battle of the normal kind. Perhaps this was a battle for Lacey.

Lacey had confided in him during their time on the Enterprise. She knew Jim almost as good, if not better than he did. He knew that Lacey must have some kind of actual feelings for Jim and if she tried to blow it off as adrenaline, all he had to say was that he didn't have the urge to mack on her or Jim during their time on the Enterprise.

As he watched Jim sit on his bed and clench and unclench his hands, Leonard just hoped that he wouldn't have to meddle.

Dammit he was a doctor, not a matchmaker.

* * *

**So that means a little jealous Jim...;)**

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**My url is shootingsparkles**


	17. Chapter 17

**Author's Note:**

**Sorry this is so late and short...I have been busy studying for the SATs (Oh god) and pit orchestra rehearsals for my school's musical (I'm playing the piano...exciting). Balancing that with schoolwork I haven't had any time, I barely managed to write this...so sorry, but after the SATs are over I'll try and write more...**

**But enjoy the next chapter, sorry it's a filler.**

* * *

Chapter 17:

Lacey went back to her dorm room where she saw Annie sitting on her bed with a look of deep concentration marring her face.

"Annie?" Lacey asked, "You okay?"

Annie looked up at her, eyebrows furrowed, "Do you think I'm accomplishing anything by sleeping around with guys?"

"Wait, what?" Lacey asked sitting down next to her. She had gone back to her dorm to go find an outfit for the date she had later that night, not have a heart to heart with her roommate. Her and Annie weren't extremely close, not like they tell each other secrets close. But they were closer than just tolerating each other because they were living together. It was complicated.

"Before the whole Romulan crisis, you remember that guy you caught me sleeping with that one time?" Annie asked rhetorically-Lacey nodded-before Annie continued, "He broke up with me after finding out about my more...provocative background."

"What?" Lacey asked. Not to sound like a poor friend but she was slightly surprised that Annie was in a committed relationship. But she didn't doubt it. She'd known Lacey since they both enlisted in Starfleet and within the first year she knew here, Lacey knew Annie was not looking for a committed relationship. Then the next years she just assumed the same.

Annie did nothing to show Lacey she was in a serious relationship. She still kept their end of the bargain, claiming the room for her own use every Friday, for the most part; went clubbing; and...well...now she could see that she probably wanted alone time with her boyfriend for Friday night dates and instead of clubbing maybe she was going on outings.

Everything was making sense and coming into a complete circle.

"He said," Annie started to say before starting to cry, "He said he couldn't look at me the same."

"Oh, Annie," Lacey said hugging her, "If he broke up with you for something like that, he's not worth your time. You can't change your path and you don't have to have an existential crisis because one guy thought you were too provocative in the PAST to be in his future."

"But, it was my fault..." Annie started.

"No it wasn't," Lacey insisted, "You didn't cheat on him right?" Annie shook her head no, "Then you did nothing wrong. If he really loved you like you loved him, he would have stayed regardless. He's not worth your time Annie."

Annie looked at her, "What if other guys are the same, what if they don't want a slut like me?"

"Woah, you are not a slut Annie, this is the 23rd century, this isn't the gender oppressed 19th century, you don't have anything to prove to men," Lacey said rubbing her shoulder.

"Yeah, I know," Annie said rubbing her eyes with a smile, "I just needed conformation that someone else believed in me."

Lacey snorted and shoved her roommate. But Lacey could tell that Annie was hurt from this but humor was her coping mechanism. And she wanted to help, genuinely she did but for some reason Lacey felt like she would only make it worse.

"I mean girls still like Jim even though he sleeps around," Annie reasoned.

"Jim doesn't sleep around as much as he lets on," Lacey laughs, "He may be branded as a womanizer but he's not."

"Really?" Annie asked, "Didn't he sleep with a girl the night he first met you?"

"Yeah, but that's gone down a lot since we've been hanging out, no matter how much he tries to insist I'm his best wingman."

"Hmm," Annie said, "Wonder why."

Lacey shrugged, "He didn't say and I don't really care."

"So how about we hit the club?" Annie asked.

"Sorry, but I have a date," Lacey muttered getting off Annie's bed and towards the panel to type in her closet code.

"A date?" Annie said, her voice perking up along with her demeanor, "With who?"

"Um, an engineer from Starfleet," Lacey said being purposely vague as his closet door slid open. Her eyes looked over her back up cadet uniform, her nurse's uniform and her civvies.

"Who, I know most of the engineers, who is it?" Annie said eagerly from her bed. Lacey looked over her shoulder to her roommate who was sitting upright on her bed staring at her imploringly.

"Uh, his name is Charles Ellings," Lacey said turning around. She watched as Annie's face went from confusion to disappointment.

"Lacey, dear, Charles is gay," Annie said gently.

Lacey widened her eyes, "Oh so it wasn't a date, he was just being nice."

"Yeah," Annie giggled and Lacey joined in.

"Oh well, he was nice enough, it'll still be fun," Lacey said with a shrug.

"Yeah, I know Charlie, he's great," Annie said with a grin and a nod.

"He seemed nice," Lacey said, "I wouldn't mind spending time getting to know more people at Starfleet. Did you know I don't even know most of the people in my nursing classes?" She picked a black dress from her closet and held it up in front of her mirror before nodding.

"Mhmmm sad, you know what else Charles can do?" Annie asked not waiting for Lacey to answer, "He can make Jim jealous."

"Why would I want to make Jim jealous, what?" Lacey asked.

"You two, so oblivious, I can tell you care for each other," Annie said sweetly, "You're both just too stupid and afraid to say anything to each other. You're too afraid to get into a relationship and he's too afraid to ruin a friendship."

Lacey stared in shock in response to Annie's bluntness.

"But no offense, both of your fears are silly. You think you're better off friends, no one's better off settling and that's what you two are doing. Settling."

"I'm not going to make him jealous, Annie," Lacey said giving Annie a look. Lacey bit her lip unintentionally going back to those moments on the Enterprise. She had wanted to kiss him and she would stop denying that. Sure, maybe her alternate universe self was married to Jim's but that didn't mean she would get married to Jim. She needed to stop outright avoiding the possibility.

They could be bad or they could be great. And Lacey had finished her trek across the unknown terrain of platonic friendship with Jim...so maybe it was time to start a new trek across the unknown terrain of her own romantic relationship possibility with Jim. A new chapter, a new generation, turning over a new leaf.

Lacey looked at Annie's slightly fallen face before lighting up into a smile, "I won't make him jealous," Lacey repeated, "At least not on purpose."

* * *

**Oh god SATs tomorrow...wish me luck. :/**


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18:

Leonard watched Jim pace from the entrance door to their door to the bathroom door at the end of their dorm. His neck had been getting a workout as he watched his best friend walk briskly from wall to wall alternating between wringing his hands together and running them through his hair. Inside he was smirking. He checked his PADD for the time, waiting to document the time and date when Jim snapped and went down to that bar to spy on Lacey and her 'date'.

All Leonard wanted to know was the name of this engineer she was going to the bar with. Lacey had described him from his eyes to the loveliest strand of his hair, but not his name.

Leonard knew that Lacey liked Jim, she said so on the Enterprise so he was concerned with how she could go to another man so quickly. For a moment he had thought that she was one of those girls that fell in love quickly and frequently but he was soon ashamed for those thoughts. He knew Lacey and Lacey was not one of those girls. Then he wondered if it really was just adrenaline or if the feelings were real but then he remembered the looks the two sent each other when they thought the other wasn't looking.

_All three of them were in Jim and Leonard's dorm. Jim and Leonard had set up 3D chess which Leonard was growing increasingly irritated by the fact Jim was a lot better than him. What was irritating was that he seemed to be making up his strategy as he went along while Leonard was trying to apply a range of techniques he had looked up on his PADD the moment the two found the chess set._

_Lacey was sprawled across Jim's bed looking furiously at her PADD and scribbling on her primitive notebook that the two had made fun of her for. Once in a while she would make an 'ohh' sound when she finally understood something or a frustrated grunt. And every time she made a noise Jim would look up in Lacey's direction._

_Leonard and Jim knew Lacey for a year now and they had gotten close over the year, unsurprisingly, she balanced the two and added to their dynamic. _

_But Leonard had to wonder, quietly and fleetingly, if Jim was getting even friendlier than normal. _

_Just as Leonard made his move Lacey sat up, cracked her back they moved to face their chess set, she studied it for a moment before looking up at Jim, "You win in two moves."_

_Jim grinned down at her as she smiled cheekily up at him before turning her head back down to her PADD. Leonard watched as Jim's gaze lingered at Lacey as she focused intensely on the small print on her PADD and stick out her tongue slightly in concentration. Leonard thought he imagined the endearing look Jim gave to their new friend because it was gone the moment he saw it._

_But when Jim went to make his next move Lacey's eyes flickered up to look at Jim wetting her lips with her tongue as she did._

_Coincidence? Leonard thought not._

"Bones, Bones," Jim called before pausing and snapping out a sharp, "Bones!"

"Yeah, what's up?" Leonard asked.

"Bar. Us. Now," Jim spit out as he tapped the button to their sliding door. He cast one last glance at Leonard before storming out. Leonard let his smirk flicker onto his lips before following his rogue friend spy on his girl. Hopefully after this some sense would be knocked into him.

The two men were seated at a small table by the wall of the bar. Leonard could feel the light tremors from Jim's bobbing leg through the floor of the bar. He watched his friend's eyes flit around the bar, scoping the perimeter. Except, usually, it was for women but this time, well it was still for women, but more like one woman.

"Jim," Leonard started.

"Don't start with me Bones," Jim said holding his hand up, "I saved our ship from a crazed Romulan form an alternate universe, I know what I'm doing."

Leonard's eyebrows drew close together, "I never asked you if you knew what you were doing...or what you were even doing for that matter. What the hell are you doing?"

Jim's jaw clenched, "Nothing, I'm doing nothing. Don't worry about it."

Leonard's eyes widen, "Touchy."

Suddenly, Jim stiffened and his gaze locked on some unknown figure behind Leonard. The doctor turned around in his seat and smirked as he turned back towards his friend. There it was there was that stare. Hopefully he would get the fact he had feelings for Lacey through his thick skull.

...

Lacey was pacing in her dorm room, much like Jim had but in a much more concentrated manner. She was wearing a black shift dress and a gold collar like necklace from Annie.

"You're going to wear a hole in the floor and fall through into Suzie and Ella's dorm," Annie reprimanded her with her hands on her hips.

"I know but I feel bad," Lacey said.

"Why, it's not like he ever said straight out it was a date, maybe you seemed like a nice person and wanted to make it up to you for knocking you down," Annie said.

"Not that, I feel bad for kind of wanting to use him to make Jim jealous," Lacey said twisting her mouth into a grimace.

Annie shrugged, "Just tell him. Everyone likes a good romance story, Charles is a nice guy, I'm sure he'll play around with your charade."

Lacey ruffled her curls that she had already given up on and nodded once. She just let her hair out of her braid and at the moment didn't care about the volume. Jim once said he liked it when her hair was like that, it was like a cloud.

"Let's do this," Annie said pumping her fist in the air.

"Are you coming with me?" Lacey asked, eyes brightening at the prospect of not doing this alone.

Annie bit her lip in response, "I think I'm going to take this Friday off."

Lacey nodded in understanding, "Well I'll be off." And with a wave Lacey made her made to the bar.

Walking into the Metal Lacey's eyes zeroed in on Charles' dark hair and the attractive way he was leaning against the bar. A smile graced Lacey's lips as she made her way towards Charles.

...

Jim licked his lips as he stared to the side of the entrance of the Metal. There she was. Lacey.

She looked. She looked...lovely.

He gripped his beer bottle tightly watching as Bones turned his head to look over at Lacey then moved his head to look back at Jim. He could see his smug grin in his side vision but decided to ignore it. Lacey was far more important.

He clenched his jaw when he remembered what the majority of his mind was thinking about when his body was on autopilot for Lacey's dorm that one night. He wanted to be with her. He had remembered when he left the Enterprise to go onto Nero's ship. He had wanted to kiss her. At first he had thrown those feelings off when they came back to Earth blaming the adrenaline.

Now, as Lacey walked towards the bar, towards some douche that she was going on this date with he was regretting just casting those feelings aside.

So he did the first thing he thought of. He finished the rest of his beer in a single gulp.

Bones stared at him in shock with a raised eyebrow.

"I need something stronger," Jim said with a gruff voice and a cough continuing to eye Lacey and the brown haired man, his frown deepening when he saw her laugh.

She threw her head back, her hair flying over her shoulder and he nearly growled when she touched him on the arm.

"Now, I need it now," Jim scowled.

...

"Hi Charles," Lacey said walking up to the stool next to him and sitting down.

"Hey," Charles greeted with a beaming smile, "Look at you, managed to sit down without falling."

Lacey threw her head back and laughed, "Hey now, I wouldn't have fallen if you didn't bump into me!" She touched his arm to put emphasis onto her point.

He put his hands up in agreement, "I apologized."

"Well, you're currently apologizing with drinks," Lacey said and on cue two drinks came in front of them.

At the clink of the glass, Lacey was brought back to what was happening. She was flirting with a guy, alibi a gay guy, but still things like this didn't happen to her. Confidence didn't happen like this. But whatever, Lacey thought as she took a sip of her drink, things change.

"So do you take all the people who bump into you for drinks?" Lacey asked because it WAS weird. If he really was gay why would he take her out for drinks? And if he did take everyone he bumped into for drinks then Lacey should run away. Now.

"No," Charles said looking off and furrowing his eyebrows which Lacey ignored, "You just looked like you could use an ear, or a drink at least."

Lacey rubbed her head making her curls stand up even more than they already were, "Yeah, I had some problems."

"Like," Charles started waving his hand to encourage her forward, "I've been told I'm a good listener."

"It's mainly my mom, but it's also," Lacey paused, "A guy."

"A guy?" Charles asked, "Relationship? Formerly a part of a relationship? Star crossed lovers?"

Lacey giggled, "Nope friends for a while, kind of hard to move on from there no. Three years of platonic feelings then all of a sudden I want more, but does he?"

Charles put his chin in the cup of his hand, squinting at her, "Did you ask him?"

Lacey sat up straight and blinked once. Ask him? Well duh. For someone who is getting there nursing license on a starship a year early she was such a dolt. Of course, ask him.

Lacey rolled the idea through her head and then it set in.

"I can't just waltz up to him and ask him, hey do you have any non platonic feelings for me because I kind of do," Lacey said in a high voice.

"Sure you can," Charles said with a disbelieving face, "You could just say that you that you like him but if he doesn't, no big deal we can still be friends."

Lacey rubbed her face as all the worst case scenarios flew through her head, "I tend to over think a lot of things and I'm pretty sure, no, I'm one hundred percent sure I will over think our entire 'friendship' after I get rejected."

Charles licked his lips and put on another thinking face. His eyes flitted somewhere over her shoulder and raised a slow eyebrow. Lacey started to look over her shoulder before Charles grabbed her shoulders quickly.

"I have an idea," Charles said looking over her shoulder and smirking, "Is the man in question by any chance the illustrious Captain Kirk?"

Lacey widened her eyes, "How did you know?"

Charles snorted, "The man's been nursing drink after drink and sending me a ferocious stink eye since you walked over here."

"Listen," Charles said, "You know Anna right?"

"Yes," Lacey said.

"Then she's told you I'm gay," Charles whispered, Lacey nodded in response, "Okay so we're going to make ol' Jimmy boy jealous."

...

After his second modified vodka shot, Jim's decision making skills were growing impaired. And his anger was increasing a lot faster than his alcohol intake.

He watched as the brown haired idiot sent Charlotte into another round of giggled and grumbled down another shot before wincing at the fire of alcohol rushed down his throat. Vodka in itself was intense but some genius decided to modify it and make it worse, make you drunker faster. Much faster. Probably a Russian. Chekov would definitely agree. The boy was proud of his Russian heritage Jim managed to think before the vodka went to his brain and blurred his judgment.

All he felt was rage. Especially when that bastard looked over at him. He made eye contact with him and sent as heated a glare as he could at him. And that guy had the gall to looked confused.

You know why I'm staring at you Jim thought drunkenly, who do you think you are making my girl laugh?

Your girl, the slightly more sober part of his mind thought, you don't own her.

I know, but I could be her boyfriend, she could laugh at my jokes. I'm funny, I make her laugh, Jim's drunken mind said, why the hell can't I.

"You're a coward," both his sober mind and another voice. Jim looked up, his vision blurry.

"No I'm not Bones," Jim slurred.

He took another swig while locking eyes with...Charles. Ugh.

"Yes, yes you are," Bones grumbled with an eye roll.

"Shut up," Jim demanded loosely pointing at him.

Jim stiffened when Charles grabbed her shoulders. He slammed his shot tube down onto the table startling Bones. Bones turned around and saw the man Lacey told them she was going out with holding Lacey by the shoulder.

"Oh great," Bones muttered to himself as he took a swig of his beer and looked at Jim's drunken enraged state.

Jim could practically see red. This guy Charles, he wasn't allowed to touch Lacey like that. He wasn't allowed to look into her eyes like that as he talked with her. Oh. OH. And he was definitely not allowed to look over here with that smug ass look.

She was supposed to be with him he thought with a surprisingly clear mind. But he was. He was... He was a coward. But not anymore. He promised whatever supernatural or higher power that was in the big wide universe that he would fight for Lacey.

Because she deserved that from him. And even if she didn't want him. At least he tried. Better to try and fail than to never try at all. Jim relaxed. Tomorrow he would do this tomorrow.

But then, Charles' mouth moved and he looked at Lacey with a question in his eyes. Lacey nodded once. Then Charles leaned forward and kissed her.

Jim jumped up, his chair smashed to the ground with a loud clang.

That, oh that man. He was definitely not allowed to do that. In the second that Jim stood there before running up to Charles and Lacey.

He felt a sliver of doubt. Maybe this was what Lacey wanted. Maybe this made her happy. But he saw the rigidness of her posture and then he lunged.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

**So sorry I've been so long. The week after I posted the last chapter it was Tech Week for the musical I was playing the piano for and it was also the week tennis season started at my school. I was going from tennis then directly to musical practice with only thirty minute interludes.**

**I'll hopefully get back to updating sooner but sorry and thanks to everyone who stuck with this story and all my crazy, inconsistent updates.**

**Also, good news! Got an 1870 on my SATs! Thank you so much to everyone who wished me luck! Taking them again but at least I'll know what to expect this time!**

**Hope you enjoyed the chapter and thanks for reviewing, favoriting and following.**


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